The Boys are Back in Town Again
by Obsessiveangel
Summary: It's been thirteen years since they separated and the girls had never felt any happier to see the boys leave. However, fate would have it that they meet again, this time in very different circumstances. How will the girls react to the return of not only the boys who had plagued their childhood but also another formidable foe- one that is hell-bent on destroying the world?
1. Chapter 0: Prologue

**Why the hell am I writing this?! I got to be honest but after all those anime and video games, I never saw myself coming back to this. Yes, yes, I'm back to fretting over what dominated my childhood. Goddammit. xD Anyway, disclaimer: I do not own PPG or RRB or Mojo or Professor... (you get the idea). **

It had been a long time since she last saw him. Standing on the roof, she had waved goodbye as he flew away with his brothers, forcing himself not to turn back and look at her lest he compelled himself to stay with her. It had been what? Thirteen years? Even so, when she saw the cobalt blue eyes, now much smaller and intense, tanned skin and blonde hair, Bubbles knew it was him and she flew straight into his arms. Thank god she had decided to drop by the mall on that day. Her sisters would flip if they saw him, and she would be dragged into fighting him as well. When it was one-on-three, he had no chance, just like he didn't on the day she and her sisters had caught him and she had dressed up as him.

"You're back! You're back!" she giggled in his arms. People were giving her weird looks, wondering who the lucky guy was to have a Powerpuff girl all over him. Thirteen years was enough to make them forget who this boy was and what he had done to them when he was merely the age of five.

"Hello Bubbles. It's nice to meet you again," he said silkily. His voice had lost it's croakiness and had gotten much smooth and deep.

"What are you doing back here? What happened to _never_ coming back?" she questioned.

"We got bored. We saw the whole world but nothing beats Townsville," he replied. Bubbles looked up at him. He had changed so much. There was not a trace of the dumbness that had defined him back then. But at the same time, he hadn't changed a bit. He was still cute, polite and he had an amazing smile.

"Are your brothers back as well?"

He nodded.

"Do they know about us?" she asked quietly.

His face contorted and he shook his head. He pulled her closer to him, his mouth at his ear. "Brick will _kill_ me."


	2. Chapter 1: Blossom

**A/N: I changed the title by the way.**

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><p>"Okay girls, let's take one last scan around town and we can go home to revise for the test tomorrow," I instructed.<p>

"_Study_?!" Buttercup choked, stopping mid-air with her hands on her hips. "Look here, Missy, there is no way I am _studying_ when my GTA is lying in wait for me!"

It was on the tip of my tongue to remind her that in reality, we bash the people that engage in whatever acts she indulges in in the game. Grabbing her by the collar of her polo tee, I pulled her along and zoomed off. I heard Bubbles giggle as she followed us.

My name is Blossom, the leader of the Powerpuff Girls. You might have not heard of us before but in our little town of Townsville, we are the most famous people around. Being born from our father's experiment, we were gifted by amazing powers ever since we were born. Aside from the weird fingerless hands and toeless feet that had long faded away, we now look like any ordinary person, only that we can seriously kick some butt. Naturally, we are also the ones responsible for keeping Townsville as a safe and peaceful haven for its citizens.

The three of us were almost done with the scan when some voices caught my ear. I stopped. A look on my sisters' face said the same thing. Someone was up to no good.

"Dude! Bash that car man!"

"No. I have a better idea. I'm going to ram it into those people over there and… Fuck! Man! I killed the dog!"

"Bash the car?" Buttercup repeated.

"Ram it into people?" I shrieked, feeling my anger bubble up inside me.

"Killed the dog?!" Bubbles screamed.

"Girls, we're going down," I instructed. We flew down and realized that we were in the part of town we rarely stepped into. It was the more dingy area, where the lesser income earners lived. We weren't discriminating but we had no business there usually. Crime rarely happened here. No one wanted to rob these people after all. We followed the sound of these voices and arrived at an apartment.

Okay what? I thought these people were talking about ramming a car into people. How were they doing it in a apartment room? I didn't see a car nearby as well, so they couldn't have ran into their apartment after mesisng with it. What was going on?

I peeked in and through the dirty window, I managed to make out three teenage boys, two sitting and one standing behind them. They appeared to be watching television… Wait, no…

"They're playing GTA!" Buttercup exclaimed. "No way. Cool!" She pressed her palms against the glass and stared even more at them. From the way her eyes glowed, I could tell she was using her X-ray vision.

"Well, then, looks like there's nothing here to see. Let's go back girls," I said. I saw Bubbles sigh, her eyes looking somewhat disturbed. Thinking about it, Bubbles had been rather quiet lately. I wonder if she got rejected by some guy or something, knowing as how she was always hopping from one crush to another and recklessly letting her feelings known.

But as off that moment, Buttercup was being a bigger problem. Her eyes were squinting as she pressed herself closer to the glass, showing no signs of intention to leave. Grabbing her by the collar again, I dragged her all the way home, where I somehow got her to stay away from her video game and sit down to study for Algebra test the next day. Sometime while we were studying, Bubbles got up and announced that she wanted to get herself some snacks from a nearby supermarket. I let her go, ignoring Buttercup's envious glares. Bubbles may not get straight As like I did but she was well-disciplined, getting Bs normally and occasionally Cs. It was Buttercup and her big fat Fs that worried me more.

It was a good thing that I made Buttercup study. When school ended the next day, she came out with the biggest grin on her face ever since she scored the winning goal for Poaky Panthers, our high school's soccer team, during last year's championships. She shoved the paper in my face. She got a B. Finally. After so many tests, she finally lived up to being Blossom's littlest sister. Patting her head proudly, I smirked at her knowingly. It was a silent communication and I could tell Buttercup's annoyance at the realization that I was going to force her into studying for every single test. When Bubbles came out of her class, the atmosphere changed drastically. The blonde was almost on the verge of tears as she held her test paper in two hands. I peeked over and saw that she had failed and she did not just fail, she had gotten an ugly F.

"Did the teacher switch your paper with Buttercup's?" I couldn't help but wonder aloud. Bubbles shook her head. I took it from her and looked through it. It was indeed hers. I could tell from her ultra neat handwriting. Buttercup, however, had hideous handwriting that was barely legible.

"It's okay, Bubs. There's always the next test," Buttercup said calmly. Bubbles nodded. She took the paper from my hands and slid it into her bag.

"Yeah and maybe you might want to try and study with us instead of alone. If you prefer the library, we could all study there together and help one another out, right Buttercup?" I asked, remembering Bubble's recent habit of studying alone in the library. Buttercup nodded.

"Guys, I want to go to the mall for a while to calm myself down… You don't mind, right?" she said.

"We'll come with you," I offered.

I saw something flash in her eyes. It looked a lot like panic and fear. She turned around really quickly, hiding her expression from Buttercup and me.

"I want some time alone to myself…" she whispered, which I caught loud and clear because of my enhanced hearing. Even before I could say anything, she shot out of school. I was about to follow her when Buttercup caught my arm.

"Leave her be, Bloss," she said. "Let's do our daily rounds without her today."

I nodded and the two of us started flying, in silence mostly. As I looked around town, I realized how boring it seemed lately with the decreased crime rates. Unlike back when we were kids, there were not frequent explosions around or monsters stomping in. Other villains rarely showed up as well. Mojo was getting old and I guess he was smart enough to tell himself that he had reached retirement already. I heard that Fuzzy had found some other female pink gorilla thing like himself and they had ended up as mates (I doubt the got married) and moved to some far away forest to live with more of their kind. Sedusa was old too and her beauty was long gone so she rarely left her house. The Gang Green Gang just broke up. There were some tales about Ace feeling that he was 'too good' for them and left them. Without their leader, the bond just withered away and they split. The Amoeba boys died. Germs like them weren't supposed to last long anyway. Princess grew up to be a slut and was too busy screwing the school's football team to get into crime. The Rowdyruffs just left. God knows to where but good riddance. As for HIM, we didn't even know what happened to him.

"Why do we even bother, BC? There is obviously no crime!" I complained.

Buttercup remained silent but she slowed down in her flying as we arrived at the location where we had stopped by the previous day. She held her hand to her lips and flew to the same apartment. I watched in confusion as she peeked in.

"It's empty. Let's go," she said. She pulled up the window and surprisingly, it was unlocked.

"Why are we breaking in?" I questioned.

"I am highly suspicious of the people who live here," Buttercup said. "See, yesterday when I was using my X-ray vision, I saw that they're a redhead, black-haired and a blonde, just like us."

I got the implications and I raised my eyebrow. "The Rowdyruffs? Seriously, you think they're those losers?" I scoffed as she flew into the house. I stayed outside, my arms crossed.

"Yupp!" Buttercup said, her voice extremely victorious. She flew out, holding a photo frame. "Explain this!"

I frowned and took the wooden frame from her as I stared at the picture. It had three young boys in it, around the age of ten. The background was unfamiliar. I had never seen such a beautiful landscape before. I looked back at the boys. One blonde. One redhead. One raven. Blue. Red. Green. Boomer. Brick. Butch.

It was them!

"BC, what is going on?" I asked.

"Oh simple. The boys are back in town… Again…" she said as she took the frame. I flew in as well. Buttercup placed it beside the tv. I looked around the room. There was a couch, a table with four chairs around it, a television with a game console attached to it, a stack of games and three doors. Buttercup opened the first door. It led to a blue room. The one beside it was red and the other was green. So they followed their colour schemes as much as we did.

"We should find them," I said, knowing that they may be up to no good. Buttercup nodded. I pulled out my phone and dialled Bubbles' number.

"Hello?" Her voice sounded back to its usual cheerfulness and I found myself smiling a little as Buttercup and I flew out of the apartment.

"Bubs, the boys are back. We need to find them… Can you come and meet us?" I asked. We needed Bubbles along. A three-on-two battle against any other villain might be okay but not on the boys. They would beat us black and blue.

There was a long silence on Bubbles' part. "Erm… The boys?" she asked dumbly.

"The boys. Rowdyruff? Brick, Butch, Boomer, remember?" I said on the phone.

"Oh. _Them_. They're back?" she questioned.

"Yeah. They live in the apartment where we went to yesterday." I explained to Bubbles what Buttercup and I had discovered as we flew over town and from a distance, I made out two figures, one clad in green and one in red, on the rooftop. I stopped, as did Buttercup. She noticed as well and was staring in the same direction.

"Where's Boomer?" she snapped.

"Boomer?" I heard Bubbles repeat in the phone, most probably after hearing Buttercup.

"We see Brick and Butch. Boomer isn't there," I said.

"I'm on my way. Wait for me!" Bubbles said hurriedly and she hung up.

"She said to wait," I told Buttercup as I slipped the phone into my bag.

"Are you kidding? This is our chance! The moment Bubbles come, we can surprise the but for now, we can start thrashing them!" Buttercup snickered. "Butch is so going down!"

Buttercup zoomed off towards the two boys and I started after her. "Butch, you motherfucker, take this!" she yelled. I stopped and watch as the green Rowdyruff turned in surprise and Buttercup's fist collided with his face. He was thrown towards the wall behind him. I expected the wall to crumble but it didn't. I joined Buttercup's side, just as confused as she was.

"Huh? I fully thought that was my strongest punch," she commented, looking at her fist. Butch cowered on the floor where he had fallen, coughing and spluttering out blood. Wait. Blood?

Brick was staring at us hatefully, glancing at his brother occasionally. "Butch, can you stand?" he asked, still looking at the two of us.

"Erm.. No…" his brother croaked. He looked over and ran towards him. "Come on, get up!"

"Bloss, why isn't he attacking?" Buttercup asked, whispering. I was sure Brick could still hear us though but I guess he chose to ignore it as he attempted to help his hurt brother.

"I don't know… BC, I didn't know you got strong enough to hit the strongest Rowdyruff off his feet," I commented, still bemused at Butch's condition.

"No, they're messing with us," Buttercup hissed. She flew over, grabbed Butch by the collar and snatched him easily out of Brick's hands. Brick looked dismayed as Buttercup pulled his brother into mid-air, floating above the city, holding him threateningly.

"Aren't you gonna fight as well, Brick?" I asked coolly. "Or are you too scared to get beaten by a girl?" There was no better way than to aggravate the Rowdyruff leader than to shoot down his masculine ego.

Brick looked at me as if he only just realized that I was there. He pointed at Buttercup. "Tell her to put him down!" he said, sounding almost pleading yet at the same time authoritatively. His somewhat pleading tone aside, the fact that he had completely taken me aback. Since when did _Brick_ not care about challenges I threw to him?

Butch was not even making attempts to free himself from Buttercup. All he did was stare downwards at the street that was metres below us. Buttercup raised an eyebrow at Brick's comment and turned to me in question. I shrugged. It was up to her what she wanted to do. Butch was _her_ counterpart.

"Okay, I'll put him down," Buttercup said. She immediately released her hold on his collar. Butch's eyes widened as he started falling. Brick's horrified yell pierced the silence between the four of us as he ran over the edge and looked down.

"NO! BUTCH!" he yelled, holding his hand out.

He wasn't flying. Why was Butch falling? What was going on?

Buttercup's brows were furrowed as she watched Butch. "Fly, idiot! Fly!" she shrieked. "Fly up and fight me, you wuss!"

There was a streak of blue and Butch disappeared from below us. I looked around and I finally caught Bubbles in sight, holding onto the back of Butch, collar. She flew over and dropped him beside Brick. Now safely on the ground, Butch let out a cry and jumped at Brick, punching him in the face.

"I told you it was a bad idea, asshead! Why the fuck would you agree to coming back here? Do you have a death wish?!" he cursed, punching Brick repeatedly in the face.

I heard Brick cuss under his breath and he gave Butch one hard punch in the face, pushing him off himself. He took his cap that had fallen a distance away from his and put it back on his head. "How was I supposed to know they want us dead?" he muttered. "I thought they'd attack only when we were up to no good."

But you're the Rowdyruff Boys. Since when are you _not_ up to no good, Brick?

"ENOUGH!" Buttercup yelled, interrupting the two of them. "What the fuck is going on? Why didn't he fly back? Why aren't you guys bleeding like hell from each other's punches? Why aren't you attacking us?!" Buttercup's voice was demanding and enraged, making her seem capable of killing both of them there and then.

Just then, the door behind the two of them opened and a certain familiar blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy stood there. He looked at his brothers and sighed in relief. "Thank god you guys are alive!"

"Why the _fuck_ did you take the stairs up this fifty story building? Why didn't you fly up?! God, did growing up make you guys dumber?!" Buttercup yelled, her voice showing more and more signs of agitations. "Forget it. Blossom, Bubbles, let's end this!"

As Buttercup and I mentally powered ourselves up for the fight, we were interrupted by no one other than our own sister. She flew in front of us and held her hands out to her side, protectively in front of the boys.

"This isn't a fair fight," Bubbles said.

"What are you talking about? _Finally there's a fair opponent_!" Buttercup sneered. "They're the Rowdyruffs, Bubbles! The Rowdyruff Boys!"

Bubbles swallowed, frowning strangely. I recognized the fear on her face but at the same time, I saw her defiance as well. I raised my eyebrow at her. What was my goodie goodie sister up to?

"I know! They've been for a month already!" she said.

"What?!" Buttercup and I exclaimed. Simultaneously, Brick and Butch snapped their heads up, surprised as well.

"How the fuck do you know that? Only the three of us know that we're back in town!" Brick gasped and there was an instant realization in his eyes, as if the answer came to him just as he spoke. He immediately turned to Boomer with narrowed eyes. The blue Rowdyruff shrugged.

"Hey, hey, Boomer, you told her, didn't you?" Brick snapped. "Thanks to you, Butch almost got killed!"

Boomer crossed his arms. "No, thanks to me, he got saved. It was because I told Bubbles that we have no powers that he got saved."

Wait, did I hear what I thought I heard? I looked at Bubbles and she nodded her head.

What in the world? The Rowdyruffs are back but with no power?!

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><p><strong>Alright. That's all for today! Thanks to everyone who has spent time reading it. R&amp;R please :)<strong>


	3. Chapter 2: Brick

My brothers and I had lost the joy in being evil the moment we found no thrill in blowing things up and doing crime. After HIM and Mojo had fought over the custody of the three of us, we decided that the biggest evil in the world was the destruction of the girls, something that we were unable to do, sad to say. It came to our senses that if we couldn't destroy them, no one else would be able to because no one was matched up against them as well as we were.

They couldn't destroy us (not anymore) nor could we destroy them. Fighting a victor-less battle was getting on our nerves, especially mine, and I came to the conclusion that we wouldn't be able to achieve anything in Townsville where the girls were as well. So I suggested that we left. Back then, my brothers had no say against me. I was the supreme Rowdyruff, Brick. They listened to every word of mine.

We didn't say goodbye to anyone. One night, we just flew away.

It was my complete intention to cause havoc in other parts of the world but after a few days of non-stop destruction, we realized that there was no fun in committing crimes if the girls were not going to stop us. We ended up boring ourselves with destroying buildings, stealing and killing the policemen that came to stop us. Thinking back, I guess I really do have the blood of a lot on my hands, something that bothers me a lot nowadays.

The three of us started travelling around the world, growing up in various countries and seeing sights that the girls were never be able to see as long as they're stuck fighting crime back home. Occasionally, we even did good by helping people in need, like a girl that was being raped or an old lady being robbed.

Most importantly, I got closer to my brothers. I still had authority as their leader and oldest brother but I had stopped bossing them about and punching them- especially Boomer- in the face for stupid reasons. They matured a lot too. Boomer had gotten smarter. I wouldn't say as smart as me and definitely not as smart as Blossom, but he was not dumb anymore and that made him more bearable. He was still cute and somewhat innocent (for a RRB) and Butch and I still bully him at times, but out of affection rather than superiority. Butch had gotten a lot buffer than I imagined him to. It took him a while to get over his love for destruction but he got over it through channelling that love into working out and building his body. His body was well muscled and sometimes, I wonder if he should be the one called Brick instead. I mean, come on, he's hard as a brick… Pun intended, considering he developed a major libido as well. With his body and new emo hair, he got girls onto his dick as easily as I used to get Boomer to get me some candy.

By the time we reached around seventeen years of age, we had arrived back in America. We had all intention of going back to Townsville but we decided to stop by the Statue of Liberty first. While we were enjoying ourselves at the statue, however, the sky suddenly turned red. The three of us were struck with confusion initially. After a long time, we had lost our immunity to the weirdness that once plagued us in childhood. If the sky suddenly turned red when we were five and in Townsville, we would shrug and discard it as HIM being up to his usual stuff. But we were in New York.

I was right though. _It was HIM_. Somehow, time around us froze. Literally. HIM appeared- his red skin, lobster claws, weirdass black beard, heels and all.

"Hello boys," he drawled, a wide smirk appearing on his face. "How nice to see you… _After so long_."

It amused me greatly how his voice could switch from sounding so feminine to rather masculine in a snap. For not the first time in my life, I wondered whatever the fuck he was and I only came to one conclusion. He's got to be Satan or some shit like that. A devil.

And that was when it happened.

With a wave of his claw, red mist surrounded us and I immediately felt sick. But just as quickly as he had appeared, he disappeared. The sky turned normal and time started again. The three of us were still taken aback but things got even weirder after that. We were about to fly off (because who the heck walks when you can fly) and we realized we couldn't. We couldn't do other stuff too, like laser eyebeams and our x-ray vision. We had lost our powers.

"Now what do we do?!" Butch cried out, waving his hand in the air.

"I thought we were going back to Townsville?" Boomer said.

"_Powerless_? Boomer, I thought you had gotten over your dumbness!" Butch scoffed. "The girls will kick our butts!"

"But I miss Townsville," Boomer said. "I wanna go back. Can we, Brick?"

Boomer stared at me with wide eyes. Seriously, his eyes were so wide he looked almost like the bug-eyed, five-year-old Boomer in the past. But he looked at me with so much hope that the older brother instinct stirred and I couldn't just say no. I shrugged and Boomer jumped, fist pumping. He seemed pleased. A little too pleased and I didn't know why.

Not until we got back and met the girls.

Boomer had this new habit of sneaking off by himself and keeping to himself about his whereabouts. Without our powers, Butch and I couldn't do anything when he snuck out without our knowledge. It was not like we could fly over town and search for him like we could in the past.

During one of Boomer's sudden disappearances, Butch and I decided that we needed some fresh air. We were out relaxing on the roof of some random building and wasting our time away since we had nothing to do. I was lying on the ground, staring at the sky and recalling how nice it was to fly with the clouds. Beside me, Butch was playing with a tennis ball, throwing it to the wall and catching it.

"Butch, you motherfucker, take this!" I heard a rather familiar yell and I immediately sat up. Butch turned around, just in time to meet a fist in his face. He was sent flying to the wall just like his tennis ball and he slumped to the floor.

Butch…?

I stared stupidly at him, my mind trying to register what just happened.

Oh no… Could it be?

I tore my eyes off my injured little brother and looked up. Two rather familiar faces were floating by the building. It was none other than our Powerpuff counterparts, Blossom and Buttercup. Bubbles was nowhere in sight though. Could she be searching for Boomer? After all, they most probably could have seen us from miles away. I needed to warn Boomer.

But before that, I needed to get Butch (and myself) out of here. What could any ordinary person like me do against two superpowered girls but run?

Butch couldn't stand and I rushed to him, trying to help him up to his feet. The girls were whispering to each other and I cursed HIM for removing our powers and rendering me unable to listen in to their conversation. Whatever. I tried to pull Butch up on his feet but he was just too darn heavy and I was struggling from his weight. Suddenly, I felt his weight off me. Buttercup had gripped him by the collar and had dragged him off the building.

_Shiiiit_!

"Aren't you gonna fight as well, Brick? Or are you too scared to get beaten by a girl?" Blossom cooed, eyeing my mischievously. She was mocking me. The inner Rowdyruff in me stirred and I just wanted to kill her so badly but I knew I needed to save Butch.

"Tell her to put him down!" I instructed, my voice betraying some of my fear and worry, making me seem like I was begging.

Buttercup glanced at her leader and she shrugged, giving Buttercup the choice to do whatever she wanted to I suppose.

"Okay, I'll put him down," Buttercup said. I immediately felt a burden lift off my mind. Butch was going to be safe… Until I saw her release her hold on Butch's collar.

"NO! BUTCH!" I screamed as I ran to the edge, trying to reach down and grab his hand but to no luck. He was falling down fifty stories. There was no way he would survive.

_Nonononononoononono._

Buttercup was yelling some stuff but I couldn't put my mind on it. Was I just going to stand there and watch my brother die? Was this how it was going to end for Butch, being thrown down fifty stories by the person he hated the most in the world?

No way!

A blue streak appeared and Butch disappeared with it. Wait what? For a moment, I wondered if Boomer had gotten his powers back. No… His streak was a darker blue… This was someone else.

I looked up. Bubbles appeared with Butch in her hands and she dropped him beside me. Butch's face looked horrified. He scampered back a little and he looked at me, trying to recover from his near-death experience. The next thing I knew, he jumped on me, straddling me and punching me in the face repeatedly.

"I told you it was a bad idea, asshead! Why the fuck would you agree to come back here? Do you have a death wish?" he cried out and continued punching me.

I let him punch me initially as before I decided that he was being retarded for pushing the blame onto me. I punched him back in the face, pushing him backwards and off me. "How was I supposed to know they want us dead? I thought they'd attack only when we were up to no good," I muttered. My hat had fallen off my head and I took it and placed it back on my head.

"ENOUGH!" Buttercup yelled just when Butch opened his mouth to say something. "What the fuck is going on? Why didn't he fly back? Why aren't you guys bleeding like hell from each others' punches? Why aren't you attacking us?!"

I was about to tell her what happened when the door behind us opened and Boomer appeared, panting and breathing heavily. Did he just run up the building?!

"Thank god you guys are alive!" he sighed in relief.

"Why the _fuck_ did you take the stairs up this fifty story building? Why didn't you fly up?! God, did growing up make you guys dumber?!" Buttercup cursed at the top of her voice.

Woah, woah, sister. Isn't that a little too vulgar for a Powerpuff? Damn, they've grown up as well.

"Forget it, Blossom, Bubbles, let's end this!"

My amusement died immediately as I watched Blossom and Buttercup grin widely. It's over. We've no chance against them now. I was about to start on my farewell speech to my two baby brothers when suddenly, Bubbles flew in front of us, hands stretched to her side, as if she was defending us.

"This isn't a fair fight," she said.

"What are you talking about? Finally there's a fair opponent! They're the Rowdyruffs, Bubbles! The Rowdyruff Boys!"

"I know! They've been for a month already!" she huffed.

My head snapped up in surprise. How the fuck did she know that?!

"How the fuck do you know that? Only the three of us know that we're back in town!" I gasped.

Did she see us somewhere? But for her to stay silent for a month… Did someone tell her? Only the three of us know… It had to be one of us… But we were always together and we never even met her. Wait, no! Take that back! We weren't always together! Wasn't Boomer always running off? Could he be the one who told her? Thinking about it, there was not much hate between him and Bubbles in the first place and they were always dragged into fights by the rest of us. Bubbles had called Boomer cute once and when we had gone home that day, he had admitted that he found her cute too. Of course, Butch and I had laughed our asses off at it.

But I was not laughing now.

I turned to look at Boomer. "Hey, hey, Boomer, you told her, didn't you? Thanks to you, Butch almost got killed!"

Boomer crossed his arms defiantly. "No, thanks to me, he got saved. It was because I told Bubbles that we have no powers that he got saved."

He told Bubbles…? He told her?!

"What the fuck, man? You told her that we're back?!" I growled. Butch stood beside me, glaring at him as well. And for the first time in a long time, Butch and I jumped at him, landing punches all over him, with the intention to beat the shit out of him.

"How the fuck do you even have the guts to go against us huh?" Butch yelled. I wanted to remind him that he was actually younger than Boomer but I decided that punching Boomer was more important. I continued punching him until I felt someone pull me off him and throw me aside. I sat up and looked behind in confusion. Bubbles had landed beside him and pulled him up to her feet. She looked at the rest of us and placed her hands on her hips.

"Yeah! Boomer and I have been meeting up lately and if you want to separate us, you can do it by force, you… Jerks!" she snapped.

"That was actually what we were doing though," Butch said, rubbing his head.

"Well… Force on me," she hissed, jabbing her thumb towards herself.

Blossom and Buttercup landed on the roof, staring at me and Butch respectively before turning to Bubbles. "What's the meaning of this Bubs?" Buttercup asked. "Are the two of you dating?"

Bubbles looked at Boomer and he shrugged his shoulders. No way! Don't tell me they're together. Forget being killed. I would just jump off the building in shame. A glance at Butch's face told me he felt the same way. They were our archenemies, for crying out loud. Power or no power, our hate for them was not supposed to subside.

But Boomer's apparently did. That is, if he hated her in the first place. Though I was sure he was initially but I couldn't say for sure after we were revived by HIM.

"We're not official," Bubbles replied sweetly, "but we do meet up often…"

I took that as a no but I was pretty sure they meant it as a yes. Blossom's eye was twitching and I thought we agreed on something for the first time in the world. But…

"You mean you failed your test because you were gallivanting with a _Rowdyruff_?!" Blossom shrieked.

"Told you to keep an eye on her," Buttercup sneered, sticking out her tongue at their leader.

So she was worried about Bubbles' test results all the while and not her status as a Powerpuff?

"Explain yourself, Boomer!" Butch snapped. "How dare you steal my limelight as the lone non-virgin among us? How dare you?!"

Butch, wait what?

At this, Buttercup started bursting out in laugher, so much that she fell to her knees and tears threatened to spill out of her eyes. Blossom looked disgustedly at Butch. Boomer and Bubbles were both beet red. As for me, I was just glad no one was looking at me with the Brick-is-a-virign? look.

"You got it wrong! We haven't gone that far yet!" Boomer insisted. "I'm still a virgin!"

Buttercup laughed even harder, rolling on the floor, but Blossom caught up to their words fast. "Yet? _Yet_? How far do you intend to go?" she scolded. "Bubbles, I will not have you failing every test!"

"Far enough," Bubbles replied. Boy, was this getting interesting. Seeing the sweet and innocent Bubbles act all defiant to Blossom was an experience indeed. I found my eyes glued to the spectacle as they argued over Bubble's new 'unofficial' boyfriend and dropping grades. Boomer watched them as well, worried for his life. Butch, on the other hand, was amusing himself watching Buttercup, who was trying to calm herself down from laughing.

The sun was already setting. The sky was pinkish and it crept me out a little, reminding me of HIM and the incident when he stole our powers.

"It's time to go home," I said immediately. "Boomer, Butch, let's go."

The three girls looked at me as if they had forgotten that I was there. As I tried to walk back to the stairs, Blossom stood in front of me, blocking my way. She had grown a lot but she only came up to my chest area and had to look up at me to meet my eyes. I frowned and crossed my arms. What did this girl want?

"Enough with the fooling about," she hissed. "What are you guys up to this time?"

"What do you mean what are we up to?!" I found myself sneering at her. "Didn't you hear him, Ribbons? _We. Have. No. Powers._"

Blossom raised her eyebrow till it was hidden under the auburn bangs. "Yeah? Really? Enlighten me how so."

"Antidote X, I guess," Buttercup huffed and I decided to leave it as that. I wasn't so keen on filling them on my life story. I'd rather publish a book about it for the whole world than tell them.

"Antidote X wears off after a while. I think it's better we deal with them now before their powers come back. Girls, get ready-"

"NO!" Bubbles cut in. "Boomer told me that HIM took them away from them!"

Butch and I jumped at Boomer again. Need I say more?

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, so I know it seems a little repetitive of what happened in the previous chapter, especially around the middle, but the story gets better, trust me! Also, rest assured, this story isn't going to be BrickBlossom-centric and the perspectives of other characters will come in as well, but in no particular order though. Please look forward for more! **


	4. Chapter 3: Buttercup

It took a lot of effort to break up the fight between the boys. They paid no heed to Blossom as she stomped her foot and demanded them to stop. Even without their powers, Brick and Butch were adamant about beating poor Boomer close to his death. The blue Rowdyruff had his arms up, defending his face as his brothers laid punches after punches all over him. I guessed they didn't change at all after all these years. Won't they ever stop bullying Boomer?

Bubbles grabbed Butch by his weird new hairdo and tossed him aside as if he was a ragdoll. He hit his head on the floor and scrambled up quickly onto his feet, looking around in a daze. Bubbles tried to grab Brick as well but he wasn't the leader of the boys for nothing. The moment he felt her presence close to him, he jumped aside, sticking his foot out. Bubbles, not expecting the sudden action, tripped over his long leg and fell right onto Boomer. Brick got up to his feet and raised his hands up, ready to fight.

Is this guy serious?

I smirked and flew at him, ready to beat the shit out of him and maybe _accidentally_ kill him. Brick's eyes widened and he jumped away as I swung my fist. Dammit.

"Buttercup," I heard Blossom sigh. With slight hesitation, I flew back to her side, crossing my arms and grumbling about how we could easily kill them now but she wouldn't let us.

Blossom walked up to Brick and crossed her arms haughtily. "I think someone has a little explaining to do," she mused.

Brick raised and eyebrow, a grin forming on his face. "I guess… Except, maybe I don't want to explain to _you_."

Even without his powers, Brick was still Brick. I could sense the tinge of superiority, the immature defiance and the judgeless decisiveness in him that had all along made him the bane of my sister's life. But there was an ounce of likableness in Brick and if he wasn't an evil asshole that was all set to make my sisters and I cry (perhaps even die), we could have been friends. In fact, I didn't mind the three boys at all, aside from their evil outlooks on life and their disgusting habits, which I was sure they would have outgrown in time.

Blossom and Brick were still staring at each other hatefully, which the intention to kill growing in their eyes. I could feel Butch walk up to my side and I glance at him a little. He was staring at the two leaders as well. From his black hair, a trail of blood rolled down his cheek and dripped off his well-defined jaw. I looked away and tried to see what Bubbles and Boomer were up to.

Where the heck were they?

"Bloss, where are Bubbles and Boomer?" I asked. Maybe Bubs had said something and gone off when I was trying to punch Brick, though I highly doubted so.

Blossom finally tore her eyes away from Brick and she scanned the surroundings. Her eyes widened in panic as she noticed the absence of our sister and the boy she had been spending too much time with lately.

"We need to find them," Blossom hissed, obviously annoyed that Bubbles, the most obedient among the three of us, was acting so defiantly. "Boomer's bad influence on her!"

"Hey! What do you mean by bad influence?" Brick scowled. "Mind you, Boomer's the nicest guy she can get to know."

Blossom turned to him with her hands on her hips. "_Nicest_? Mind you, a Rowdyruff can't be _nice_," she sneered.

"Well, he's Boomer," Butch said quietly.

"So what?!" Blossom cried out, flailing her hands. "Whatever. Buttercup, I'll the east side of the city and you take the west." After giving off her instructions, she dashed off. I was about to fly off as well when I felt someone grab my wrist and pull me back. I was about to turn back and deliver a hard punch to his face when I saw his annoyed expression. I relaxed my hand and raised an eyebrow.

Butch let go off me and jabbed his thumb towards the door. "You really think they flew off? Mind you, I bet they're inside."

"Yeah right. Like Bubbles would be so dumb to hideout right in the building where we're at," I snorted.

"Butch, just because you can't control yourself and do it at staircases doesn't mean Boomer would too," Brick sighed. He looked up at me. "You listen to Ms Blossy's instructions. Butch and I will check out this building."

I shrugged in acknowledgement and flew off. The sky was already almost dark and I found myself getting annoyed at how things were turning out. Not only had Blossom not let me touch any games for the whole week, I wasn't getting a chance to play even though I had gotten a B on the test. If I had knew better, I wouldn't have mentioned to her that the Rowdyruff boys could possibly be back and dragged her to their place. I would be at home playing now. Though that also meant that Bubbles would still be going out with Boomer behind our backs.

Even with my night vision, x-ray vision and superhearing, I found no trace of Bubbles at all. I flew back to the building. Blossom was there waiting for me. She raised her eyebrow at me and I shook my head. Gritting her teeth, Blossom punched the wall, causing a small dent in it. Woah, calm down woman… The poor building didn't even do anything to you.

"Now what?" I asked.

"Where are the other two?" she questioned.

"They said they went to check out this building," I replied.

Blossom flew up and her eyes started glowing. She flew around the building for a short while before she came back down and sighed. "They're gone as well…"

Of course they're gone. Why would they stay and help us? Why the fuck was I so stupid to believe them?!

"Might as well go home now…" I muttered.

"Go home? GO HOME?!" I gasped. "BC, what about Bubbles? She's roaming around with a hooligan! She's going to lose her innocence to him. He's going to ruin her and leave her all broken and depressed. And you know how Bubbles is."

"It's not as if she's with Brick or Butch. It's Boomer. He's too dumb to even know that a dick is supposed to go in a pussy," I snapped.

"What if their lost of powers was all an act for them to take us down one by one?" Blossom pointed out.

Blossom had a point. Even if they were the dimwits from the past, it did not mean that thirteen years did nothing to their intellect. Plus, it isn't as if the three of them were entirely stupid in the first place. I wouldn't put it past Brick to actually hide his true intelligence so that we would underestimate him and his brothers. We took Boomer down easily once. What if they wanted to take Bubbles down? Three-on-one is a gone fight for her.

"So what do we do?" I asked, all up for whatever she had in mind.

Blossom grinned as she filled me in on the plan. If they really were acting, it would be a big risk seeing as there was only two of us but otherwise, it would work. Blossom and I took off back to the boys' apartment and we peeked in through the window. Butch was lying on the couch, an ice bag place on his head. Brick was pacing up and down the length of their living room, rubbing the side of his face tiredly. They weren't speaking and there was no sign of Boomer. Blossom and I flew into the apartment complex and landed outside their apartment. We knocked on the door. We heard hurried footsteps and the door swung open.

"Boomer, you-"

Brick was cut off as I sent a hard punch to his face, throwing him back into the apartment. I walked in, cracking my knuckles. Brick fixed me with an annoyed, yet frightened, look while Butch had clambered off the couch and was peeking at me from behind it.

"Are you going to come with us or shall we do this the hard way?" I smirked. Blossom floated in and watched him, smiling radiantly as she placed her hands behind her back.

"We'll come, we'll come. Damn, calm your tits," Brick muttered. Blossom stiffened at his words and she flew down and stomped on his stomach.

"Mind your words, _imbecile_," she hissed at him.

Brick and Butch obediently followed the two of us as we started walking home. It was a rather beautiful night and I had to admit that walking down the streets under the stars and moon was rather nice. Blossom was looking upwards at the sky as we walked, her mouth hung open as she stared up at the stars. Flying in the sky under the stars were nice but it was nothing compared to walking under them. The sky looked really vast. It was a different feel to it entirely.

Butch and Brick were staring at everything but us. I could here Butch mutter curses under his breath directed at us. Surprisingly, Brick was silent throughout the entire walk, which was just plain weird. I was so used to Brick yelling every now and then at his brothers to order them about or just to insult the shit out of them. Brick used to be the kind of person who loved hearing himself speak. He would shout and yell for no particular reason. I had never heard him speak at an average human level, not until today that was. In fact, from the non-stop cusses flowing out of Butch's mouth, I wondered if he had swapped bodies with his older brother.

We arrived at our house and Blossom entered first. "Professor!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. "Are you home?"

"Down here." The reply came from inside the house and we immediately knew where he was. Okay, now for the next stage of our plan. Blossom and I looked at each other and we both nodded. We spun around, catching the two boys by surprised and punched them hard right in the face. It worked. We knocked them out completely. Taking our respective counterpart by the ankle, both of us dragged them into the basement, where Professor's laboratory was.

"Professor, could you check them out for us?" Blossom asked.

Professor had his back to us and at the sound of Blossom's voice, he removed the goggles he was wearing, turned off the Bunsen burner that he was using and looked at us. His eyes widened at the sight of the unconscious Brick and Butch.

"What's going on here?" he enquired, crossing his arms. He had obviously not recognized them and I didn't blame him. Brick and Butch looked nothing like they did in the past when we last saw them. They had obviously gotten taller, grown fingers, toes, ears and noses (like us) and were not wearing matching uniforms anymore. In fact, the only things that remained from the past were their hair colour and Brick's cap.

"We caught the Rowdyruff Boys. They claim that they have no more powers. Could you check them out for us?" Blossom requested.

"I see. No problem," he replied. He walked to his cabinet and pulled out two syringes. Blossom and I watched as he bent over and took blood samples from the two boys. He put them into separate test tubes. "This would take me some time. Give me about an hour. Where's Bubbles?"

Blossom and I exchanged knowing looks. Blossom, being Blossom, told Professor everything about Bubbles' new relationship with Boomer. Professor frowned, put the test tubes into some sort of machine and sat down on his seat, rubbing his head tiredly.

"Boomer's the other one, right? The one we caught?" he asked.

"Yeah," Blossom replied.

He looked at the two unconscious brothers and sighed. "If their powers are gone, it shouldn't be a problem. I think these two are worse."

I had to admit that it was true. Between Boomer and these two, they were the bigger problem. These two hotheaded Ruffs, one with a love of superiority and another with a love of destruction, were the biggest, scariest and deadliest villains Townsville had ever seen. Without his brothers, Boomer was nothing.

As Professor went about checking their blood, Blossom and I sat, with the two unconscious boys between us, and waited for him. Blossom's eyes never left the Professor as he went about his work. As for me, my eyes never left Butch. I wondered how it would be to tie him up and use him as a punching bag. Looking at his muscular build, I guess he would make a really nice one. It would strengthen my fists a lot after my workout… Though it could possibly kill him but who cares? He's Butch.

Somehow or another, we managed to sit there for an hour, the boys showing no signs of waking up. The Professor rolled over to us, sitting on his roller chair.

"They're right. There's no trace of Chemical X in them. No Antidote X either. It's like they were born normal," he said.

"They were born from a toilet bowl, Professor. There's nothing normal about that," I coughed.

Professor raised his eyebrow. "Oh, did they? And I thought the circumstances of your birth was weird."

"So now what do we do? Send them home and forget about their existence?" I asked Blossom.

Blossom nodded. "It appears so… But before we forget about them, we got to deal with Bubbles and Boomer. I can't have her failing her tests!"

I nodded, not in agreement about her failing her tests but rather, because I know better than to let her date Boomer. A Powerpuff and a Rowdyruff can't possibly be anything but enemies. They were made to kill us and we were made to uphold justice (which defeating the Rowdyruffs probably was a subset of).

"We need to find Bubbles. Let's drop these two off at their homes and go find Bubbles," Blossom said.

Oh boy, it was going to be a long night.


	5. Chapter 4: Bubbles

I opened my eyes and for a moment, I wondered where I was. It was morning since the sun was spilling in beautifully but this was not my room. The ceiling was brown, not blue, with cracks all over it. I sat up, the bed creaking. Huh? My bed never creaked. The room I was in was small and unsightly. There was a small box-television in front of the bed, a small fridge a distance away and a rickety cupboard. There were two doors, both cracked and termite-infested.

Gross!

I heard a groan beside me and I almost jumped out of bed. I glanced down, my eyes falling on a very familiar blonde boy. It took me awhile to remember what had happened. Boomer and I were trying to run from our siblings. Last night, while Blossom and Brick were absorbed in their argument and Butch and Buttercup were watching them, Boomer and I decided to sneak away. Without a second thought, I had grabbed his hand and flown out of town, to a nearby motel. We only had enough money for a night and we had no idea what we were going to do afterwards.

Boomer opened his eyes and looked at me, at first in confusion. Soon, a big grin surfaced on his face. He sat up, leaning on the backrest and hugged his pillow and he looked at me with his deep blue eyes.

"Good morning," I greeted him, feeling a smile come onto my face as well.

"Morning," he chuckled, his voice hoarse. "Did you have a good night's sleep?"

I nodded. I got out of bed and I realized that I had nothing. No clothes to change into, no hair brush to do my hair and no soap to bathe with. Oh no. Whatever should I do?

"You could stay in bed," Boomer suggested, as if he could read my mind. Maybe he could, in a way. He knew me better than he let on for some reason.

"What do you suppose we do?" I asked.

"We could go back to Townsville or we could walk or hitchhike and go over to Citiesville," Boomer said calmly.

"Citiesville?! But why?" I questioned, titling my head.

"It's the closest. I mean, the moment we get back to Townsville, we're going to be bashed by your sisters," he said, "and when I get home, Butch's gonna punch me in the face and Brick is going to throw me off a building."

"Ouch."

Boomer grinned and looked at me, obviously pushing the decision to me. Sure, I didn't want to leave my sisters. I mean, we're the Powerpuff girls, we never did anything separately from each other. But at the same time, there was Boomer and I didn't want to leave him. Our siblings were quick to jump into the conclusion that we were dating and that he was my boyfriend. He wasn't, but I would be lying if I said that there was nothing between us. There was something. It's always been there. Boomer had caught my eye the moment he opened his mouth after being reincarnated by HIM.

He was just too cute.

Boomer was staring at me with a completely innocent look and I swear, he was really too cute for his own good. Somehow, I really wanted to go up there and kiss him on the lips, even if it was a just brief one, even if it was like the first kiss we had back when we were five…

Okay, that wasn't really a kiss. It was more of a peck on the cheek… Plus, he ended up exploding after that… Not something I wanted anymore.

"Won't you miss your brothers?" I asked as the devil and angel in me debated over leaving with him and going back to the girls.

"Perhaps. But I've been seeing them my whole life. Living without Butch's snores and Brick's naggings for a few days wouldn't hurt," he mused.

I had to admit that it was true. Leaving the girls a few days wouldn't hurt. There hadn't been any big crimes lately either. At most, it was a robbery or some kids causing havoc- nothing my two sisters couldn't handle without me.

"Okay, Boomer. Let's go," I said.

Boomer's eyes widened. "Are you serious?" He failed terribly at concealing the excitement and joy In his voice and he sat up straight, looking at me eagerly.

"Yeah, let's go to Citiesville," I giggled.

Boomer climbed out of bed and stretched, giving me a tease of his back as his tee lifted a little, revealing the tanned skin underneath. I wonder how he had gotten such a nice tan from. But since he mentioned that his brothers and him had travelled the world the past few years, I guessed they dropped by some beaches. Boomer slipped on his blue converse sneakers and started walking towards the door. I cleared my throat and when he turned back, I jabbed my thumb towards the window.

"Come on, Bubbles, you can't fly to Citiesville. Superpowers are illegal there," he said, his eyes twinkling in amusement. "When the three of us were there, we got busted for flying. Apparently, a bunch of superheroes once cost the town millions in destruction while trying to stop robbers. The amount saved by them was outweighed by the destruction and the mayor was really angry."

"Oh," I said, feigning ignorance as the fuzzy memory resurfaced a little. Boomer didn't have to know that it was the Powerpuff Girls that caused that rule.

He opened the door. "Shall we?" Giggling at his attempt at being a gentleman, I walked out of the door and he followed, swinging the door shut behind the two of us. We walked out of the motel, deep in chatter, ignoring the motel staff who had been giving us sneaky looks since we arrived last night. We walked along the road, away from Townsville and towards Citiesville. Occasionally, there would be a car or two that drove past us. Boomer would try to hitchhike. It took him about seven tries before we finally managed to get into a car. The driver was a plump, friendly old man, with a thick grey beard. He wore a pair of glasses that reminded me of my old temporary pair.

"Bubbles, isn't that you?" the old man asked in a gruff voice.

Oh dang. I should have known the driver was from Townsville! This road joined the two cities.

"Oh, hi," I muttered, sighing to myself. Ooooh busted!

"Why are you taking a car and not flying to Citiesville?" he asked, bemused.

"Superpowers are banned in that city, Sir. She can't fly there," Boomer replied after seeing my almost shocked state.

The old man glanced at him from the rear mirror. "And who might you be, young man? You seem to ring a bell…"

Boomer scratched the back of his neck. "Oh, I'm a nobody. My name's Boomer!"

I fixed Boomer and warning stare. What was he? Insane? If his Rowdyruff past was known, this man might drive us straight to the police station. Boomer didn't notice me glaring at him and he seemed awfully relaxed; too relaxed for my liking.

"I see, I see. I must have gotten you mixed up with someone else," he said calmly.

He didn't realize anything? Did the old man not realize that this very boy was the same boy who was causing havoc when we were kids?

"Cause I knew this blue-eyed blondie boy once from all those years ago, when the Powerpuffs were a new thing in Townsville. I was a bus driver back then and this superpowered little guy picked up the bus I was driving and hurled them at the girls. Mind you, it was a school bus with young kids inside. Thank god Bubbles caught it," he recounted.

Boomer and I exchanged amused looks, which the old man did not notice.

"Bubbles, you don't suppose to know what happened to those hooligans, would you?"

"No Sir. They disappeared." I was on the brink of laughing and I had to bite my lip to stop the giggles from escaping.

"Ah, maybe it's for the best," he chuckled. The drive after that continued in silence. The old man turned the radio on and some oldies was blasting. It might be old but it was surely catchy and I found myself bobbing my head to it. Boomer watched me in amusement.

Once we were in the city, the old man dropped us off at a diner and we waved him goodbye. After he left, I turned to Boomer and crossed my arms. "I'd appreciate if you don't give your name out so loosely. What if you get thrown into jail?"

Boomer looked at me queerly before he started laughing. "Are you worried?" he asked, in between his chuckles. I glared at him. "Okay, okay. But really, you don't have to worry. People know us as the Rowdyruff Boys. They don't know us as individuals."

"Oh really?"

Boomer stared at me for a long while. "I'm not really sure but that's what Brick said and he's mostly always right."

I found myself sceptical at this but I chose to close my mouth. Now in Citiesville, the two of us had entirely no idea what we should do. The city just had a depressing feel to it and for bubbly personalities like Boomer and I, we hated it. It was just the complete opposite of Townsville. I could imagine Brick and Butch living in a horrid place like this but no matter what, I could never imagine myself fitting in. As we walked down the street, Boomer nudged me and pointed at a short, almost horrifying building. There was a sign pasted on the walls saying 'Rooms For Rent'. We needed a place to stay so we decided to try our luck at it.

We were greeted by a scrawny old woman with a big frown. Apparently, her name was Mrs Jenkins. I had no idea what happened to Mr Jenkins but I didn't ask either.

"Are there free rooms still?" I asked.

She looked at Boomer, then to me and then back at him. "I don't rent out to young teenage couples. They make a lot of noise at night with their raging hormones. I can't sleep."

"We're not a couple," I said calmly. I really didn't want to go looking for more rooms. I didn't like walking through the streets at all. I looked up at Boomer, who was nodding though I noticed a little hurt in his eyes.

"Then what are you? Siblings? The two of you do look alike…" she muttered thoughtfully.

"Yes!" Boomer said immediately. "This is my younger sister." He snaked his arms around my shoulders and pulled me close, with a wide grin on his face.

"Oho. Very well then. What are you names?" she asked.

For some reason, I didn't want to give her our real names. I didn't want to be Bubbles in this town and I didn't want him to be Boomer. "I'm… Brittany! And this is… Erm… Bo… Brock!" I exclaimed.

Mrs Jenkins raised her eyebrow. "Last name?"

"Erm… Jo…tonium… Jotonium!" Boomer said and it almost made me burst out into laughter.

Mrs Jenkins' face displayed her complete suspicion but walked back into her own apartment and came back out with a key. "Here you go, Brittany and Brock Jotonium. Your room is 515. Just take the stairs and you'll find it easily." She closed the door and the two of us walked away.

"Jotonium? Seriously?" I found myself giggling.

"Just mixed our last names up," Boomer chuckled.

"Since when did you guys have a last name?" I questioned as we climbed up the stairs.

"Everyone has last names and since Mojo did create us, we took his. Anyway, you can't expect us to take HIM's name," he chuckled. "Boomer HIM! Butch HIM! Brick HIM! We're the Rowdyruff Boys!"

I laughed at his mockery of their old constant catchphrase and I found myself giggling. As we walked about on the fifth floor, to our great annoyance, the rooms were not numbered in order. Somehow, we managed to locate 515. The interior was not as bad as I had expected. It was much cleaner than the motel. But it looked more of a room than an apartment. There was a double bed in a corner, with a dining table, a closet, a pantry and a door to the toilet. With that, the first step was complete. Now, we had to discuss our future plan of action.

"So the old lady told us that we have to pay our rent on the eight of every month. It's the eleventh of August today so we have a little less than a month to rake up $500."

"We've got to work," I chuckled.

Boomer slapped his forehead. "Speaking of work, I totally forgot about my job back home," he sighed. "I'm so fired when I get back."

"How long are we staying here anyway?" I asked.

"I don't know. Until we get bored of each other?" he suggested, shrugging it off. That sounded fine to me but I wondered if I would ever get bored of him.

After lazing around a bit in the room, Boomer and I decided that we needed to get jobs. I remembered seeing a 'Waitress Wanted' sign at the diner where the old man had dropped us off earlier so I decided to head back there and try my luck at getting an interview. Boomer headed off to find a more 'manly' job.

The diner was called Sun Paradise and upon entering it, I realized it had a very much different atmosphere from the rest of the town. It was colourful. The waitresses and waiters all had broad smiles on their faces. The janitor moved about mopping the floor as he sang a rather happy tune. I walked up to the nearest waitress.

"Hi. I'm interested in getting employed," I said.

The waitress smiled at me. She had a dazzling set of white teeth. Her eyes were sparkling hazel ones and her hair was as black as Buttercups, only it was long and wavy and she pulled it into a high ponytail. I read from her nametag that her name was Erika.

"Oh? Really? Stay here! I'd get Boss." She jogged to the back of the kitchen and pushed her way into the door. As I waited, someone pushed a glass of water towards me. I looked up and met a smiling brunette, who looked about a year or two older than me.

"You new here?" he asked.

"I just arrived," I said.

"Oh. A runaway?" he questioned. I raised my eyebrow at him, wondering how he knew. "It's just that you look a total mess. But don't worry. We were all like this once."

"_We_?"

He grinned and put down the cup he was holding. He held out his hands and gestured all about the place. "Does anyone here even look like we belong in this depressing excuse of a town?"

"Not really," I admitted.

"Exactly. We all ran away from our homes and somehow ended up here. Boss gave us a job. He's a cool man. My name's Ted, by the way," he introduced, holding his hand out. I took it and shook it warmly.

"Hello, Ted. It's a pleasure to meet you. My name's Bubbles."

Yes, I know, I gave my real name to him. But he was like me and so was everyone else in the diner. I actually felt more comfortable here. I had to get Boomer over to this place one day.

The boss came out and I realized that he was the old man from earlier, the one who had given Boomer and I a lift. His name was Mr Robert Winters. He told me to call him Robert, which I refused to out of respect, of course. It took me a while to explain to him that I decided I needed a break from our usual crime-fighting in Townsville and I needed a way to support myself in Citiesville. He asked me about Boomer and I told him that Boomer's trying to find a job that required physical labour so that it would help him to build his body up a little. It was a lie but I didn't want to offend him by saying that Boomer found working in a diner a little too sissy for him.

Mr Winters gave me the job almost immediately. He also gave me an advance of $300 so I could get myself and Boomer basic necessities. I was provided with two sets of uniform and I decided to try it on. It looked extremely cute on me! It was a minidress, figure-hugging and sleeveless. There was a tiny hat-like accessory for me to wear on my head as well. Lastly, there was my nametag. I decided to write Brittany on it instead of Bubbles.

I found out a few hours later that everyone there had aliases. Ted was actually called Derrick. Erika was called Rebecca. There was a blonde named Jennifer but she called herself Jessica. Lastly, there was Thomas, real name: Ben, who seemed more like a Citiesville citizen than a runaway due to his solemn expression and emo hair (which kinda reminded me of Butch, only that his hair was a very pale shade of honey blonde, almost white even). I heard from Rebecca later on that he had run away from an abusive home so he was like that.

And with that, it was the beginning of a new, but temporary, life with Boomer.

* * *

><p><strong>That's all for today folks and just since one or two of you asked, YES, there will be Reds, Blues and Greens in this story. As of now, only Boomer and Bubbles are having their moment but the other two will come as well. So do you guys want to see Reds first or Greens? Leave it in the reviews andor message me. We'll be democratic and go by the majority's decision! Till the next chapter, Obsessiveangel signing off. **


	6. Chapter 5: Butch

It had been a week since Boomer disappeared and Brick had started to lose faith in finding him. Everyday, after work, the two of us would wander around Townsville, hoping to find him but to no avail. I was pretty sure we had checked every inch of town. There was nowhere else left for us to check anyway.

"We should just give up," Brick muttered as he kicked the dining table, annoyed.

"But he's Boomer. We've never lived a day without him before," I insisted.

Brick fixed me a glare that I had not seen ever since we gave up crime. "Well, guess what, Butch! We've managed a week without him and we will manage however long without him, even if it's forever, as long as he doesn't come back. I am sick of this. You'd expect me to stay silent when he's dating a freaking Powerpuff? Who the fuck does he think he is to betray his _own_ _brothers_ for a _Powerpuff_," Brick hissed at me. He walked over to the couch and flopped down on it, crossing his arms. Ever since a few days after we met the girls and Boomer went missing, Brick hadn't been his usual self. He had been yelling at me, bossing me about to go do stupid stuff like pass him the remote that was a metre away from him and hitting me whenever I objected. Brick may not look like it but he did pack a punch. I felt like I was dealing with the five-year-old Brick again and trust me when I say I was _this_ close to becoming the five-year-old Butch.

I scowled at him and took my jacket off the coat hangers. Brick watched me as I slipped the jacket on and went to put on my shoes. I saw the alarm flash in his eyes and he immediately stood up and rushed at me, grabbing my arm.

"Where do you think you're going?" he growled. "You're not leaving either. I won't let you."

"Who're you to tell me that?" I muttered, pulling my arm roughly away from him.

He took a few steps closer and held out a finger. "Watch it, Butch. I'm your leader."

Of for fuck's sake! I shoved him away and left the apartment, making sure to slam the door to express my annoyance. I wouldn't have minded if he had said he was my elder brother but leader? Seriously? Did he think we still were the Rowdyruff Boys and we had to listen to him? No way. We had no powers. We weren't a team anymore. We were just brothers who were living together.

_Yes… That's right… That's the way, Butch…_

I stopped and looked around. There were no signs of any life-form in this pathetic excuse of a corridor. At the same time, I was sure I heard a voice. After looking around again, I assured myself that I was alone. I left the building and started walking towards the main part of town. It was already night and the sky was starry, with the bright white moon floating in all its glory above me.

Ah, I wanted to fly. Fuck you HIM. Fuck you from earth to hell and back to earth again for stealing my powers.

As I stared into the sky, I saw a pink and green streak lighting the night up and instinctively, I ducked into an alley… Wait, why did I do that? The girls would find me suspicious now. Great! I continued walking down the alley, hooping that they had not seen me suddenly rush into the alley at the sight of them. I was walking at top speed but with no clear destination in mind. I just wanted to get away from Brick and now, the girls.

I'm innocent!

But as expected, two girls appeared in front of me from the sky. Sighing, I slid my hands into the pockets of my jeans and looked at them with what I hoped was a blank face.

"Alright. Give it up already, Butch! I know you're up to something!" Blossom said, pointing her finger at me just like Brick had done so earlier on.

"Where are you going?" Buttercup hissed.

I shrugged. "Can't a man get a breath of fresh air?"

"You? A man? Yeah right, and what kind of fresh air do you get in an alley?" Buttercup challenged.

"The kind I like," I lied.

Blossom grinned smugly. "Yeah sure. He's a Rowdyruff, Buttercup, remember?"

"Oh yeah. I forgot their disgusting habits."

"Whatever. Have a nice day!" I replied, waving to them, as I turned and started walking out the alley from the way I had just entered. I didn't turn to look to know that they were following me. Still with no particular destination in mind, I headed to the park. I didn't know why either but at least it'll give me some fresh air. The girls were still following me, though they were quite a distance behind… And above.

Sitting on one of the benches, I leaned back a little and took a deep breath. The place was silent and there was no one around but the two girls who had now sought refuge behind the bush and me. Maybe they thought that I didn't notice them stalking me. I decided to let them think whatever they wanted to while I just sat there.

I didn't know how long I sat there for but eventually, I heard some rustling from the bush behind me. Soon, someone stepped out and sat beside me. I glanced sideways and saw Buttercup.

"So… What are you up to?" she asked.

"Robbing a bank," I sneered sarcastically. "What does it look like?"

"I don't know. I was just wondering why you have nothing better to do with your life than sit here," she sighed.

Says the one who was just stalking me… "Yeah, I've nothing better to do. Why? Are you going to _entertain_ me?" I mused. It took me a moment to realize the implications of my words, which Buttercup had caught on quickly and reddened a little bit. Oh come on! Why the fuck would I want to have her in bed anyway? She's a Powerpuff.

But it doesn't have to be in bed…

I looked at her and realize that she had developed… Nicely. She was wearing a pair of black shorts that showed off her creamy white legs nicely. Damn those legs. I just wanted to get between them and…

I shook my head, not even wanting to go there mentally. She's Buttercup. The girl that almost threw me off a fucking building… In fact, she actually did throw me off.

"So Butch, what are you and Brick up to nowadays?" she asked, feigning sweetness by smiling at me so widely that her eyes seemed non-existent.

"Looking for Boomer," I replied flatly.

Buttercup raised her eyebrow. "And?"

"We figured they left town," I sighed.

"Oh. Likewise… But where do you think they went?" Buttercup questioned.

"I don't know. The next town perhaps?" I groaned.

"No… Bubbles would never step there again!"

Again? So the Powerpuff Girls had been to that godforsaken city. Though I wondered how they managed it there considering superpowers were banned there. I remember the three of us getting chased by helicopters for merely flying. All we were doing was flying. We weren't hitting anyone or stealing anything. We were just flying…

Of course, we destroyed all the helicopters that chased us, possibly killing everyone that were in them. I remember causing three of them to crash into each other before eyebeaming them and causing them to explode into bits and pieces.

Ah… Good times, good times.

"They'd come back… At least, I know Boomer will… Eventually," I sighed. "Though I don't know about your sister… She has to go to school and all, right?"

Buttercup shook her head. "Tomorrow's the last day of school. It's going to be the summer term break."

Oh, right. Summer was coming up. I had totally forgotten about that. I wondered what Brick intended to do… On the second thought, maybe I wouldn't want to spend it with him, especially when he was in such a foul mood.

Speaking of which, I wonder if he had calmed down…

I stood up and Buttercup looked at me questioningly. "Going home," I said flatly as I started to walk back home. I heard a sigh from her before she ran up and joined me. "Why're you here?"

"Following you," she replied as if it was the most obvious answer in the world. Okay, maybe it was. "Yeah, but _why_?"

"Blossom went to find Brick just to make sure the two of you aren't up to no good," Buttercup explained.

"Brick's being a little bitch at home," I sighed. "The only 'no good' he's doing is whining and being such an ass to me."

Buttercup shrugged. "Then that means Blossom will be at your house too. I'll meet her and go back with her together. No biggie."

Big biggie, Butterface. I didn't want anyone to see me walking home with you, especially not Brick. Goddammit. But what could I do to comply? My head throbbed in pain a little in warning that she could throw me into a brick wall just as easy as she could punch me and throw me off a building. I never realized how inconvenient living without superpowers were. And I never realized how dangerous it was to live as a villain without superpowers. Damn, how did the Gangreen Gang assholes managed to deal with it? I got to give it to them but those guys had some guts to mess with the girls when they had no powers.

We reached my apartment. Standing outside, I realized that it was quiet… _Too_ quiet for my liking, especially if both Brick and Blossom were in there. The two of them would be at each others' throats, yelling at the top of their voices. She could have beaten him to death or something but she wasn't Buttercup. She wouldn't hit someone unless she had a reason to do so…

Damn. Why did I get the violent counterpart?

I hesitated for a moment and opened the door. Blossom was in the living room, crossing her arms and tapping her feet. She greeted the two of us with a big scowl on her face.

"Butch, your brother is a big, fat, _asshole_!" she screeched, pointing at the door to Brick's room.

"Why? What happened?" Buttercup asked, immediately floating over to the door, ready to beat the shit out of Brick. Blossom grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

"Shhh!" she warned, putting a finger to her lip. "He's armed!"

Huh? Brick is armed?

"So what? Just take the gun or whatever from him. It's not like they'll hurt us anyway!" Buttercup huffed.

"Yes it will!" Blossom insisted. "Apparently, it's an Antidote X gun. Like the one Mojo and Princess used on us in the past! The one that can shoot out Antidote X _and_ Chemical X. If he uses it, they can revive their powers." She noticed me and clasped her hands over her mouth.

"So you're telling me that Brick has a way to restore our powers but he doesn't realize it?" I asked her, with a raised eyebrow.

"No…" Blossom said, horrified. "First he tried to shoot me but I evaded it all… Then, he said that if I came any closer to him, he was going to shoot himself… And then shoot me but whatever. I can't let Brick regain his powers!"

Damn! Brick had found a way for us to get back our powers! How amazing… But then again, we couldn't do anything with the pesky girls around here. I needed to get Brick to shoot the two of us before they hit us and destroy the gun… Wait a second. Why the heck did he threaten her that he was going to shoot rather than immediately just shooting himself?

I pushed myself past the two of them and they both glared at me. I immediately raised my hands and shrieked in defence. "I'll get him out. I'll get him out!" Buttercup narrowed her eyes but she nodded at me.

I walked over to the door and knocked on it.

"Why are you still here? Didn't I ask you to get lost?!" Brick shouted.

"It's me, Brick…" I sighed. "What's going on?"

"Nothin'," he scoffed in reply. He opened the door and walked out, immediately slamming it shut behind him. His eyes caught the two girls behind me and they narrowed immediately.

"What are you doing here? I asked you to leave," Brick scowled. "Or else I'm really going to do it!"

Blossom floated over to him and pushed me away from Brick. I watched as her face nearer his threateningly. She smirked.

"Do it."

I expected Brick to pull out the gun and shoot her right there and then but he didn't. I saw him reach to his back, only for his hand to fall back to his side.

"So that your sister over there can eyebeam it when I take it out? No way babe," he mocked. "I'll find some other better time to do it." With that, he opened the door, entered his room and closed the door again. Blossom's eye widened in rage and I saw her pull her fist backwards. Fuck! She was going to break the door. I jumped at her, grabbing her arm and pulling her back.

"We'd have to pay for that, you know!" I cried out as she turned to face me, looking as if she was going to hit me in the face for stopping her.

"How'd Brick know we were going to do that?" Buttercup questioned. "I mean, the scenario was plainly ideal for him. He could have shot Blossom and me in a matter of seconds if I didn't eyebeam it. It would all be over."

"Brick is smart," I replied using the 'duh' tone Brick had constantly used once upon a time.

Blossom groaned and she rushed out of the window, leaving me alone with Buttercup. I was about to turn into my room when I heard a loud crashing noise. Was that was window? It was followed by shouting, which I very sure belonged to Brick.

Shit!

I rushed to his room and tried the door. It was locked. Having no other choice, I turned to Buttercup and nodded dejectedly. She flashed me a grateful smile, flew forward and delivered a great kick that caused the door to break into two. The two of us rushed into Brick's room. Blossom had straddled Brick and gotten him pinned under her with one hand. Her other hand was raised above her head, holding out some sort of pink plasma ball.

"Tell me where it is!" Blossom threatened.

Brick narrowed his eyes and stuck out his tongue playfully. "Never."

Blossom's fingers tightened around the ball. "How'd you get it?" she hissed.

"Not tellin' ya," he chuckled. "What are you gonna do anyway? _Kill me_?"

Blossom gritted her teeth and looked up. She saw Buttercup and her eyes brightened victoriously. "Buttercup. Check his room!" she instructed.

"On it!" she replied. I watched as Buttercup's eyes gleamed red and she looked about the room. She flew over to his closet and opened a drawer. As she rummaged through it, Brick struggled under Blossom's hold, trying to push her off but she was much too strong. After a while, Buttercup pulled out a gun. It looked very much like any of Mojo's creations. About the size of a pistol, it had a few buttons and sliders about. Buttercup tossed it up and Blossom laserbeamed it. There was a small explosion and the gun felt onto the floor as a million bits of metal. Blossom flew off Brick.

"What the fuck was that for?" Brick hissed at Blossom. The redheaded girl grinned at him and she flew out/ Buttercup followed after, leaving merely a green streak that faded off soon after.

I glared at Brick. "I think our _leader_ has some explaining to do."

Brick blinked a few times before he sighed and sat on the bed. "Where do I start?" he murmured tiredly, rubbing his head.

"How about how you got that gun?" I asked.

"Princess gave it to me. It was invented by Mojo and she bought a few of them so she gave me one," he replied.

I frowned. "Just like that? She just gave it to you?"

"Of course not. Jesus! She asked me to kill the girls with that and in exchange, she'll give us back our powers," Brick explained. "I could just get it from her and shoot myself but she said that if I did, then she'll shoot me- because she has like thousands of those things- and kill me."

I was still frowning. "It still doesn't make any sense… Why would she give you something and get you to do it when she herself can easily shoot the girls? Plus Boomer did mention that she gave up crime. The Powerpuff Girls aren't a problem to her anymore!"

"She gave it to me at a price, of course," he scoffed, glaring at me haughtily.

"What? Five dollars? Come on, Brick. Nothing we can afford moneywise even means a thing to her. Like look at the girl's wealth!"

I could see Brick gulp and he immediately glanced away from me, fiddling with his thumb. He muttered something under his breath. Though I couldn't hear it clearly, it sounded like he was saying 'boyfriend'.

"What?"

"She asked me to be her boyfriend!" he yelled standing up. He crossed his arms and sat down again as I stared at him, dumbfounded.

"But you used to hate her…" I said flatly.

"Well, Boomer used to hate Bubbles too," Brick pointed out softly. From his tone, I could tell he didn't believe himself either. Thinking about it, Boomer never showed signs of hating anybody.

"So you started dating her so you could get the gun?" I asked.

"We met a few days ago by accident and she recognized me. So we started talking and well, she told me she has a way I can destroy the girls… But she said if I revived our powers without killing the girls, she would come after us with those things," Brick replied. "And you know her connections. She would be able to find us no matter where we go."

"Oh. So now you're her dog?" I groaned.

"I'm not anybody's dog!" Brick snapped. "I just thought we could be the Rowdyruff Boys again, you know. I miss my powers."

"I don't need _Princess'_ stuff to get my powers back. I don't even want anything to do with her," I snapped back. "She's a spoilt brat, Brick. She doesn't know the meaning of survival! All she knows is getting Daddy Dearest to buy her everything and anything she wants."

"Well too bad! Because she's my girlfriend and whether you like it or not, you already have something to do with her!" Brick yelled at me.

I didn't know why I was getting so agitated but I just was. Maybe it was because he was dating her that he wasn't himself anymore. He obviously didn't feel anything for her so he was obviously dating her for the gun and maybe some other benefits. But the more I thought about it, the more annoyed I became. Was I losing the Brick I new to Princess Morbucks?

"Fuck you, Brick. You're an ass for dating her," I growled.

Brick grinned smugly. "There's nothing you can do about it."

"Yeah, I obviously can't do anything about that but if you continue being a bitch, I'm just gonna leave like Boomer did. For once, he finally did something smart."

Brick's expression fell and I merely flashed him a smirk before leaving to my room.


	7. Chapter 6: Brick

"Brickie honey, what happened to the gun?"

I looked up at my erm… Girlfriend… And blinked in confusion. Princess was sitting directly across me in the posh restaurant with an apple sundae in front of her. She rested her chin on the top of her intertwined hands, her arms propped up by her elbows.

"The gun? What about it?" I asked.

"It exploded, didn't it?" she asked sweetly, her eyes closed and her face tilted to her left.

"How do you even-"

"Know?" she cut in, her eyes gleaming. "Oh Brickie, we are so perfect for each other we even complete each others' sentences!"

What was this girl? Mad?

"That's aside," she continued as she picked at her sundae, "I put a device into it so I would know when the gun gets destroyed…"

I felt my throat go dry and I immediately tried scanning the crowd subtly for any of her guards that could potentially murder me. I didn't spot any. I turned back to Princess. Was she going to demand for money? Maybe she would give me another one… Or maybe she would break up with me (oh please do).

"It got destroyed by Blossom," I murmured.

"And what were you doing when she destroyed it?" Princess asked. She was till using the innocent girl tone and it was creeping the hell out of me. This girl was scarier than I last remembered her to be. What happened to the girl that cried because we refused to let her join our team?

"She was holding me down!" I insisted. Princess' eyes widened and I saw something flash in them, which made me squirm a little in my seat.

"How did the girls even get a hold of your gun?"

"They checked my whole room. They found it even though I hid it in my underwear drawer," I sighed as I leaned back into my seat. My arms fell to my side as I slid my hands into my pockets.

"They looked through your underwear drawer?!" she gasped, standing up and slamming her hands on the table. A few people looked at us, shaking their heads in disapproval, and Princess glared at them. She sat back down, took the napkin and dabbed it at her mouth.

"Buttercup did but no biggie, really…" I said, knowing that it would be better to calm her down rather than agitate her further.

"She looked through _my_ Brickie's underwear drawer? She must die!" Princess hissed.

It took a lot of willpower not to slap my forehead in exasperation at her words. "Look, it's not that big of a problem. You have thousands of those guns. You can give me another or you yourself can use it and just zap them."

She glared at me. "I don't have another gun…"

"But you said you had thousands of those…"

Princess smiled radiantly again and she got up. She reached over and took my shirt's collar, pulling my up until we were only inches away. She leaned to my ear and gave it a little nibble. "No I don't have thousands of those things but do you know what I have thousands of? I have thousands of guards willing to hunt you down if you ever make this poor Princess cry." With that she pushed me back into my seat. I felt my throat go dryer that it already was as all notion of breaking up with her instantly vanished from my mind.

The rest of the date went on in silence on my part. Princess continued going on about all her adventures in school and simply how pathetic she found the Powerpuffs as 'After all, how can they be well-liked by the people when they don't even have boyfriends?' and I was so close to telling her that Bubbles does indeed have a boyfriend.

Freaking Boomer.

Why did he get the gentle naïve girl while I got the overbearing possessive brat? I swear I only dated her for the gun. I didn't expect her to blackmail me into continuing the relationship.

The best thing about dating Princess is that I didn't have to send her home after our dates. By the time we left the restaurant, her limo was already there waiting for her. Princess stopped walking, turned to look at me and firmly pressed her lips against mine.

"Do you want to come home with me? You can sleep in my room," she said suggestively.

I smiled weakly. Although spending a night with Princess seemed rather appealing in that sense, three hours a day with her was more than enough. I didn't want Butch to think I was bailing out like Boomer did either. Princess suggested to take me home but I politely declined (yes, politely, she had fucking guards out there). I stood and watched as her limo pulled out of the driveway and disappeared into the night. I stood there for a while before I started walking home.

It was a chilly night even though it was summer. My shirt was too thin and it didn't protect me enough from the cool air. I shivered and quickened my pace home. I didn't actually want to go home but I knew I had to. There was nowhere else I could possibly go aside from Princess' home, of course.

Maybe I should have accepted the offer. Should I call her?

"You can't possibly be thinking of accepting that girl," I heard a sneer from behind me.

I didn't turn around. "I think I'm still allowed to report a Powerpuff for crimes like stalking, right?" I asked, my back still faced towards her.

"I'm not stalking you. I'm keeping an eye on you," Blossom replied as she landed in front of me, "just like how Buttercup is keeping an eye on Butch and Bubbles… Well, I guess she's also keeping an eye on Boomer… In a way."

I raised my eyebrow. "Are you afraid the powerless Brick is gonna do something? I might snatch an old lady's purse. I might spit on the grass… Oh fuck, I think I littered just now!"

Blossom crossed her arms. "You're planning something or else you would have left her by now," she said flatly. "You hate Princess."

"She's rich, woman. Love or no love, I can get money from that bitch," I scoffed, "and there's no law saying I can't so don't even thing about balling those pretty little fists."

"She's rich in STDs as well," Blossom sighed. "I'm guessing she has more experience that you, Butch and Boomer put together. She's slept with the whole football team and more."

Putting the three of us together doesn't really give you much in the first place. Boomer and I were virgins. Butch has about one girl a month or so… Though I hadn't seen him with any girl ever since we got back to Townsville.

Ignoring Blossom, I started walking down the path towards my home. I didn't turn to see if she was following. I just wanted to go back and sleep. The day had taken its toll on me. But I knew that a big headache was waiting for me at home as well. Ever since that day with the gun, Butch and I hadn't been getting along. It was quarrels after quarrels even over the smallest issue like what to watch on tv. And I'm talking about big time quarrels- ones that if we still have powers, we'd be laser eyebeaming each other already.

At some point in time, I turned back and Blossom was long gone. I was already at my apartment complex by then. With deep hesitation, I walked in and headed for the apartment. I walked past the landlady's house silently, not wanting to wake her. She had already gave Butch and I an earful after the broken window. She was still yet to find out about my broken door.

I slipped into the apartment, hoping Butch would be asleep as it was 11pm. But no, he was very much awake. Sitting in front of the tv, he was holding onto a controller and meshing buttons violently on it. I walked over and stared at the screen. It seemed to be Mortal Kombat and Butch was too engrossed in the game that he didn't even notice me standing behind him. He was muttering some curses and after straining my ears a little, I realized they were directed at me.

I held in my sigh and went to Boomer's room (since mine had lost a door), wondering why the fuck my brothers turned out to be such a pain. One had left me and the other one now hated me completely. I know I wasn't the best brother when we were younger but I had outgrown the lame bossiness that once plagued me. I tried to be nicer to them because I knew that we needed each other to survive and we were living perfectly… Until we got back to Townsville and met those Powerpuff Girls again.

It was their fault we fell apart. Those girls…

I ended up letting out a yell as I punched the wall at the top of my strength. I heard some cracking but the wall showed not a single trace of damage. Instead, I felt a sharp pain in my arm and I let out another yell, this time much louder, holding onto my right arm.

Fuck fuck fuck. Did I just break my arm?

I heard the door slam open and I looked up. Butch was standing there, looking around. His eyes came to rest at me and he titled his head in confusion.

"Brick? Is everything okay? Why'd you yell?" he asked.

I smiled weakly. "Yeah everything is fine," I replied, my voice cracking a little. Shit shit shit. Now I sounded like I was crying. Butch turned on the light and stared at me. He walked over and took my arm, making me hiss in pain and wrench it away.

"What the hell did you do?" he questioned, placing his arms on his hips.

"Nothing really," I murmured. "I think I sprained my shoulder or something."

Butch glared at me. "No, you wouldn't scream like a girl if you just sprained your arm, idiot. Come on, let's go to the hospital."

"For what?" I asked, particularly annoyed at how Butch suddenly seemed so concerned when just about half a day ago he was capable of throwing a kitchen knife at me.

"You broke your arm," he said flatly. "So come on because if I have to drag you there I will drag your fucking ass there."

"Why do you care?" I murmured. I hadn't intended to say it out loud by it slipped out of my mouth before I could stop myself. Butch stiffened and turned to me, all of his anger vanishing from his face, leaving only a hurt expression. What was I thinking? Of course he cares? He my brother for fuck's sake!

Butch swallowed. "Brick… You… You're an ass, you know… But you're the only one I have after Boomer left. So don't you _fucking _ask me _why_ I care because if I can worry my ass off about that bastard that had eloped with a fucking Powerpuff, I will sure as hell die of worry if my only remaining brother is secretly killing himself."

I didn't know how to respond to that so I ended up slumping onto Boomer's bed. "I'm tired Butch. Let me sleep," I insisted. I accidentally rolled onto my injured hand and cried out again, sitting up immediately. Fuck. I needed to get that checked.

Butch walked towards me and grabbed me by the collar. I scowled as he pulled me onto my feet and started pulling me out of the room and towards the door. Great. Just great.

About three hours later, I was sitting in the backseat of Butch's rented car as he drove us back towards our apartment. Apparently, the impact of the punch caused a crack on the lower half of my arm bone and it had to be in a cast for a month at least. With my dominant arm now rendered useless, Butch had decided that I should take a break from working and rest at home till my arm recovers. While it did seem appealing to me, it would only half our income. It was already good enough that we didn't have Boomer's pay anymore but up till my hand recovered, I would be unable to work too.

"I'll manage," Butch had said but I was not too sure. How could he earn enough for both of us by working merely at the mechanics?

Not too keen on arguing with him, I remained silent the entire trip back home. I wanted to apologize for wasting his time as he had taken me all the way to the hospital and back but I held my tongue. We went back home in silence. Butch immediately went to his room and slammed his door shut. I decided not to bother him and I went to my own room. I had left my phone on the table and I picked it up.

What the fuck?!

Fifty-three missed calls from Princess?!

Even though I wasn't madly in love with her, her threat rang in my ears and I immediately called her back. I heard the phone ring twice and it was picked up, as if she was waiting for me to call her.

"Brick!" I heard her exclaim, choking. Fuck, was she crying?

"Princess? What's the matter?" I asked although I knew damn well what the matter was.

"Why didn't you answer any of my calls?" she screamed into the phone, making me hold the phone away from my ear so as to protect my eardrums.

"I went to the hospital. I got myself hurt by accident," I explained, sighing. "Left my phone at home too…"

"Did the Powerpuff Girls beat you up? They did, didn't they? Those nasty girls dared to lay their hands on _my_ Brickie. How dare they even touch you?! Don't worry, baby. I'll take care of them. You just go to sleep, okay? I love you! Sweet dreams of your lovely Princess!" She made some sort of kissing noise and she hung up. She had spoken so fast that I didn't get to say anything at all.

So now she was after the Powerpuffs for nothing?

Ah, whatever, what did I care? It's better if they're dead anyway.

…

Damn, why was Princess such a bitch?!

I tossed and turned in bed, trying to fall asleep but no such luck. It wouldn't come to me. Groaning, I got up and sat on the edge of my bed, thousands of thoughts running through my mind.

Was returning to Townsville a big mistake? Was returning to America in the first place a mistake? The three of us were happy until we got back and everything started falling apart. I thought that we were inseparable. Boomer proved that wrong. I always believed that Butch would stand by me no matter what. He proved me wrong as well. Oh guess what? I proved myself wrong as well. I never saw myself dating Princess. Everything was going wrong and I could do nothing about it.

I wondered if Butch was asleep. It was already past 3am and I guessed he would be snoring by then. Still, I stood up and walked over to his room. Without knocking, I opened the door and slipped in. In the darkness of the room, I could see Butch lie on his back, his hands behind his head. He was still, but very much awake, staring at the ceiling. He looked at me the moment I entered and I felt myself looking away.

"Brick?" he murmured. "Why are you here?"

"I wanted to apologise… For troubling you," I replied, sighing, "and for being an asshole. I know you hate Princess and don't want me dating her."

Butch sat up and he shrugged. "It's okay. You used to take care of me when I got hurt. Driving you to the hospital is the least I can do." He stopped and hesitated. "You know, Brick, it doesn't really matter if Boomer and I hate her. But _you_ hate her. You used to hate her as much as the Powerpuffs, or maybe even more…"

"There is nothing I hate more than the Powerpuffs!" I insisted.

"Yeah, sure," Butch snorted. "Why didn't you shoot Blossom the other day? Even though Buttercup would have eyebeamed the gun and destroy it, you had more than enough time to strip Blossom off her powers."

I didn't expect this question and I felt my eyes go wide. I knew damn well I didn't shoot her but the reason just made me feel all weak and effeminate. But I couldn't lie to Butch… He was… Well… He was Butch.

"I didn't want to end up killing her. It felt wrong," I sighed. After years of giving up crime, it felt like the ice around my heart had melted and I could not feel comfortable committing a crime. There was no way I could just kill someone and not live with guilt, even if that person was a Powerpuff Girl… Even if it was the one who killed me all those years ago.


	8. Chapter 7: Buttercup

"Blossom, the phone!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, my eyes still fixed on the television.

I was in the midst of levelling my character up to prepare for the Boss fight right down the path. I had no time to step away from the television and answer the phone. But Blossom showed no signs of appearing. I paused my game and groaned. The Professor was out on some convention for a few days. I had to answer the phone or no one was going to pick it up.

"Hello?" I snapped into the phone after I had picked it up.

"Hello. Is this the Powerpuff Girls' home?" I heard a smooth, silky voice from the other end of the line.

"Yes, this is Buttercup speaking," I sighed. _The same Buttercup who's going to beat the shit out of you once she finds out who you are._

"Oh. It's me, Boomer."

My eyes widened, with the notion of beating him up evolving into killing him. "You sure have some guts calling me when you've kidnapped my sister!" I cried out into the phone. I saw Blossom's head peek out from the wall at the corner of my eye and I turned to fix her with a 'can-you-believe-this-guy?' look.

I heard Boomer sigh in annoyance. "Look, I didn't kidnap her. She came willingly," he said. "Anyway, I called to tell you that we're fine. You most probably don't give a shit about me but I hope you can pass on the message to my bros… Bubbles is good. I would put her on the phone but I called without her knowledge."

I raised my eyebrow doubtfully even though I knew damn well he couldn't see my face. "Where are you guys?"

"Not gonna tell you. Bubbles flew me some place really nice and peaceful," he replied. "We're happy."

I sighed. Nice and happy? Butch and I had come to the conclusion a few days ago that Boomer and Bubbles could have gone over to Citiesville but if he said that they were somewhere nice and peaceful, I could strike that out. Citiesville was anything but nice and peaceful. It was plain horrid.

"I swear, the moment we meet, I'm going to _kill_ you," I hissed.

"Sure you are," he said as if he didn't believe me. "Because Bubbles would totally love you for killing me."

What? AHHH! Since when did _Boomer_ become so cocky? That bastard.

"How's Brick and Butch?" Boomer asked.

I wondered for a moment if I should fill Boomer on the latest intel Blossom and I had gotten on Brick and I decided why not? I mean, it's not like Brick is going to kill me. He didn't even have his powers.

"Your brothers are perfectly fine. Brick's got a girlfriend and a real pretty one too!" I chuckled.

"Who? Your sister?"

"Boomer, get real. Blossom and Brick is the last couple that will ever get together," I sighed. "He's together with Princess Morbucks."

"Eww…" Boomer said. "Whatever, as long as he's happy."

"Yeah…" I murmured. _As long as he's happy_? Boomer didn't seem to care that his brother was with that bitch- completely opposite of how Butch reacted. On the day Brick had 'attacked' Blossom with his new Antidote X gun, Blossom and I had lingered outside of their apartment and listened in on their conversation. Butch didn't seem to accept the fact that Brick was dating Princess. I recalled a major argument had broken out between them. After spying on them for a while, I realized that they rarely spoke properly and argued most of the time. After that, Blossom and I decided to leave them to be. If they were disunited, they wouldn't pose a threat, especially since they had no powers. I wondered why Boomer was so accepting of Brick's situation. Then again, maybe it was because he was in a much worse position. Princess was an annoyance to the boys back then (if I recalled right) but Bubbles was an enemy.

Wow… I bet Boomer was wishing all of us were like him and accept his relationship with Bubbles.

"Buttercup? Are you there?" Boomer asked, snapping me out of my thoughts. Blossom was staring at me weirdly as well, wondering if there anything was wrong. I guessed I must have blanked out.

"Oh, yeah… Sorry. I was just thinking. Were you saying something?" I asked, feeling like a total klutz.

"I was asking about Butch. Any news on him? How many girls had he taken to bed? Has he taken you to bed?" Boomer sounded like a little child on the other end of the phone. For some reason, I pictured him bouncing as he asked.

"I don't know and why the _fuck_ would he take me to bed?" I almost screamed into the phone. Blossom grinned mischievously at me, obviously catching on with the conversation although she was only hearing one side of it.

"Well, you said that Brick and Blossom is the last couple that would ever happen but that means that there's a chance between Butch and you!" Boomer exclaimed innocently and a little too hopefully.

"Come on, just because he has some sexy muscles and has the 'I'd-give-you-a-good-time-in-bed' aura does not mean that I want him to fuck me." I didn't realize that I said it out loud until Blossom's face changed from a mischievous one to an incredulous one.

"Ohh," Boomer cooed. "I look forward to what's to come. I think Butch and you will make a wonderful pair!"

"Boomer!" I growled.

"Got to go now. See you, BC!" he snickered and he hung up, without giving me the chance to snap at him for teasing me about Butch and calling me BC. I slammed the phone down, fuming so hard that I bet steam was coming out off my ears.

"I'm going to the store to get some food!" I cried out, walking towards the door. Blossom followed after me, probably debating within herself about what she should say to me.

"It's almost midnight," she warned as I pulled on my emerald leather jacket and shoved my feet into my green and black converse sneakers. "Come back quick."

"Yeah yeah. Do you want anything?" I asked.

Blossom shook her head. I left the house, slamming the door shut behind me. Although I could have flown there, I decided to walk to the minimart down the street. At the point in time, it was the only one that was usually still opened. They didn't sell much food except for snacks and microwavable stuff but I decided to go anyway. The air was cooling, which was good for my burning nerves.

I never knew Boomer was as annoying as his brothers. I really wanted to kill him.

_Maybe he was right._

Oh, shut up voice in my head… Wait a second. I stopped, feeling extra cold of a sudden. That voice in my head was not my conscience. It sounded foreign, yet familiar at the same time. I looked around but all I could tell was that I was alone and shivering not just from the cold. I quickened my pace to the minimart.

I grabbed a few packets of chips and a box of instant pasta. I walked over to the cashier and shoved everything on the counter. I looked about the stuff that was displayed at the counter and my eyes fell on the packets of condoms. I blinked, remembering Boomer's question. I felt the hair at the back of my neck stand as my cheeks heat up.

I fucking did not want Butch in my bed. No I didn't!

"Buttercup?" I heard my name being called. I looked up and immediately had the scare of my life. I jumped back, screaming.

What the fuck was Butch doing here?!

I stared at him, seeing the white polo tee and familiar logo at the badge, and calmed down.

"Why the hell are you working here?" I grumbled. "At midnight too."

Butch shrugged, packing my items as he keyed them in. "Kinda short on cash now. I'm the only one working so I have to take on double shift."

"And Brick?"

"He hurt his hand so I got him to rest at home," Butch replied, passing me my bags. "That'll be eleven dollars."

I rummaged through my wallet and passed him a fifteen. As he got the change ready, I remember Boomer telling to pass a message to his brothers. I took my change from Butch and stood there, staring at him and wondering if I should pass the message to him.

"What's up?" Butch asked. "You so horny that you want this sex god here or something? That would explain why you were staring at the condoms earlier on."

… What..? I clenched my fists and swung my right hand, colliding with his cheek and pushing him back. Butch clutched his face and glared at me.

"Boomer called, you ass. He told me to tell you and Brick that he's fine and living in some place nice and peaceful with Bubbles. They're happy, apparently."

"Oh," Butch murmured. He ran his hand through his hair, pushing his emo bangs backwards and fully revealing his face for once. Wow… He was kinda hot, to be honest. I watched as he nibbled on his lips lightly, his eyes darkening as if he was deep in thought. Looking closer, I realized that he had dark circles under his eyes. Had he not been sleeping?

"Hey, Butch, is everything okay?" I asked out of curiosity.

Butch looked at me in surprise at the unexpected question. He nodded a little before he sighed and shook his head. "The opposite, actually. Everything is fucking terrible." Butch sat on the chair and rested his head on the counter. "Brick's been really annoying lately. His mood is highly unpredictable. One moment he's a total dick and the next, he's the nicest big brother ever. He broke his arm too and he's kinda hopeless now. Princess drops by and all she does is whine about the shabby conditions we- no he- live in and how she's willing to spare him a room so that he 'doesn't have to suffer living with his baby brother in a slum'. I had to pay for the hospital that day so the finances are tight… And then there's Boomer who's living happily in some nice and peaceful place…"

"Oh," I said, not really knowing how to reply to him. "Maybe it's because of Princess?"

"It's obviously her. Brick doesn't even like her. I don't get why he's still together with her," Butch sighed. He sat up and leaned back into his seat, rubbing the back of his neck. "Man, I feel like I'm the oldest."

Deciding to cheer him up for no particular reason, I took a packet of condom and flicked it at him. It landed right smack in the middle of his forehead. Butch picked it up and stared at it, and then at me.

"Maybe you need an outlet," I said cheekily.

Butch sat up straight and blinked at me. "What? With you?" he wondered dumbly.

"Of course not," I spat, flicking my wrist to smack him on the head playfully. "But I'm sure you get it."

"I haven't _gotten it_ in a long time," he replied, smirking. Somehow, I found myself grinning as well. He continued staring at me, from top down, and his grinned widened. "Enemy or not, I'd totally do that," he murmured, eyeing me playfully.

"Shut up," I growled. But strangely, Butch's words didn't repulse me at all. In fact, I found myself keen, wondering how good he was in bed. Fuck who he is, he had such a sexy build and I couldn't help but wonder how big he was. It was a long time I had someone in bed. The last time I did, it was with Mitch Mitchellson. We both were drunk (and kinda high- don't tell Bloss) and I really couldn't recall it much. Other than that, I haven't really done much.

But I do have enough experience to tell if there was a high chance whether a man would be worth it in bed and trust me when I say, just on looks alone, Butch looked totally capable of making me scream (as much as I hate to admit it).

Butch hesitated and reached into the drawer. He pulled out a piece of paper and a pen. I watched as he scribbled something down and passed me the piece of paper. I looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"My number. If you ever feel the need for something… _Extraordinary_… Call me," he slurred and gave me a wink. I scowled and stuff the paper into my pocket, with every intention to burn it the moment I reached home. Waving goodbye to him, I walked out. My earlier anger had vanished and I just couldn't stop smiling. Damn. I think I made Butch's day.

Ahhhh! What the fuck was wrong with me? Why was I so happy that I cheered my arch-nemesis up? God! How about… Maybe it was because only I had the right to give him hell, not anyone else? Yeah, that's right. He didn't deserve hell from anyone but me.

I reached home and found that Blossom was still awake. She had kept my game for me and was curled up on the couch with a book. In the background, MTV was on, filling the house with the music of the latest boy band. To be honest, they looked gay and their voices sounded like ten year olds. I turned the television off. Blossom did not budge. Well, that would explain why she didn't seem to mind the terrible music. She didn't even realize it. I tapped her on the shoulder.

"I bought some chips, you know… Sure you don't want any?" I asked, waving the bag in her face.

"No, I don't… I was waiting for you to return before I went to bed," she said. She got up and stretched, yawning as if to show her fatigue. "Why were you so late?"

"Oh. I saw Butch and I kinda stroke up a conversation with him," I replied.

Blossom eyed me suspiciously. "Uh huh… What do you have to talk to him about anyway?"

"Just passing Boomer's message," I sighed. "Anyway, Boomer said that he and Bubbles are in a nice and peaceful place and that they're happy."

Blossom rubbed her head. "Is that so? Well, Bubbles sure know how to choose a guy…" There was sarcasm and scepticism in her voice but I also detected something else. A trace of approval, perhaps?

…

Nah. It couldn't be.

Blossom bade me goodnight and went to her room. I got my microwavable pasta ready and sat cross-legged on the couch. I flicked through the channels and decided to settle on watching the latest _Man of Steel _movie. Although the movie was rather interesting and my food was simply mouth-watering, my mind kept on wandering over to Butch and my hands itched to call him for no particular reason.

Something extraordinary huh?

I felt myself reddened at the thought of Butch and me doing it together. Suddenly, the pasta didn't taste good anymore. I shoved the plate away and curled up on the couch, pulling my feet up and hugging my knees close to my chest.

_You so horny that you want this sex god here or something?_

_Enemy or not, I'd totally do that. _

_If you ever feel the need for something extraordinary… Call me. _

Oh for fuck's sake!

I shook my head and got up. I turned the television off and threw the remote somewhere. As I stormed up to my room, I cursed life as my mind kept replaying my encounter with Butch in my mind. Fuckfuckfuck. That was Butch, for crying out loud! He was my enemy; the bane of my existence. He was made to kill me, just like how Brick was made to kill Blossom and Boomer was made to kill Bubbles. Then again, Boomer and Bubbles seemed to be happy living together. So did that mean there was a possibility for something to happen between Butch and me?

I stopped randomly and realized that I was standing outside of Blossom's room. Even if Butch and I were in a sexual relationship with no strings attached, I was sure Blossom would flip. She showed disapproval even when Bubbles said that she wasn't officially together with Boomer. Then again, Blossom was pissed because she failed her test. Did that mean she would have accepted it if Bubbles had passed? Would she accept me with Butch if I passed all my tests?

Wait a moment, what was I thinking? There's nothing between Butch and I! We're not even friends, much more friends with benefits. Boomer's voice rang in my head.

_I think Butch and you will make a wonderful pair._

Fuuuuuck! Curse the Rowdyruff Boys, and curse them hard. I hope HIM rapes them up, down, left right and make them pay for doing my head in so much. Urgh! Goddammit!

I stormed to my room and threw myself on the bed, curling up into a little ball. I hugged my pillow and closed my eyes, trying to fall asleep. Despite my objection, Butch's face appeared in my mind as his voice rang in my head. I opened my eyes again.

This was getting nowhere.

Groaning, I sat up and took my phone from the sidetable and fished the slip of paper out of my pocket.

Blossom would kill me if she found out but as lameass teenagers usually say, YOLO.

* * *

><p><strong>:') Is this the first signs of romance? I wonder. Hmm... <strong>


	9. Chapter 8(a)

The girl found herself tip-toeing down the corridor though she knew that there was no one awake to spot her. Even if someone did, she could just say that she was going to meet her boyfriend. They could possibly ask her why she would want to meet him at midnight but she could always tell them to mind their own business.

After all, he was _her_ boyfriend.

That's right. He was hers and hers alone. No one should be allowed to touch him.

Damn those Powerpuffs. How dare Blossom touch him? How dare Buttercup look through his underwear drawer?

Brick was _hers_.

She found their apartment and realized that the door was locked. She turned to the men behind her and nodded. One of the men pulled out a gun and shot the doorknob. The silencer concealed the shot well and she knew that even the next-door neighbour would not hear anything. She went in.

Brick was asleep in his brother's room since the door to his was still yet to be fixed. There was no sign of Butch. She recalled Brick mentioning his youngest brother taking on double shifts since he was unable to work because of his injury. She walked over to him and stared at him as he slept soundly.

She had never seen Brick look so innocent. Back when they were younger, he had always looked superior, like the mastermind who could possibly lead the world to it's destruction. Nowadays, he looked troubled. She knew it was Boomer's fault. He couldn't take Boomer's betrayal like Butch could. He had always firmly believed in his ideals with no flexibility at all.

She licked her lips as she ran her hand through his hair and he shifted a little. She looked over at one of her men and he brandished a syringe. She took a step back as he walked over and injected the liquid into him. Brick stirred and his eyes flickered open. He let out a half-hearted cry and jumped back a little, obviously still wondering if everything was a dream. Then, he fell back down on the bed, eyes closed and body still, as the drug's effects started showing.

She grinned eagerly and clasped her hands together as the man picked him up and started walking out of the door.

Perfect! He was going to be hers once and for all.

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, this isn't actually a full chapter (like it's only a tenth of the length of an original chapter) but I felt it was kinda necessary to build the tension? Hm?<strong>


	10. Chapter 8(b): Butch

I grinned as Buttercup left the mart. It was plain obvious from her reddened cheeks that she had been completely embarrassed by what I had just said. To be honest, she was driving me crazy. With those creamy legs of hers, her hour-glass body and her plump lips, all she had to do was ask and I would be ready to throw her onto the bed and rip her clothes off.

That's right. Butch the Rowdyruff was totally lusting after his Powerpuff counterpart.

Brick would totally kill me if he weren't too much 'in love' with his beloved Morbucks.

I clicked my tongue as I sat in silence. Why did I give Buttercup my number in the first place? I doubt she would call me but well, there still was that slim chance she would. I picked up the condom she had flicked at me and I smirked. Seeing as I was the only one alone, I slipped the condom into my pocket. Buttercup would totally love doing me with a stolen condom. I chuckled at the thought.

Yeah… Like she would even call me…

…

Guess what? She did.

I had closed down the shop and was walking home when I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. In fact, I was standing right opposite the building. Initially, I didn't think it was her. Maybe Brick had to tell me something or Boomer finally decided to call his beloved brothers. Despite how it may sound, the latter seemed more possible.

"Hello?"

"Just to be clear, I am _not_ calling because I want to have sex with you. Now that's out of the way, sup."

"Buttercup?" I stopped walking and my mouth hung open. Some rather posh car drove past me. I wondered for a moment if some rich dude had lost his way and accidentally turned into the street. I didn't give it much thought though.

Man, I didn't expect Buttercup to call that soon.

"I couldn't sleep and I figured that you're the only one who's still awake," she said.

Yeah right. I bet she was thinking about me and decided that she just had to call me or my head would plague her mind. I sniggered at the thought and I heard Buttercup curse.

"Alright, BC, sure, whatever you say," I laughed. I frowned at the sign hanging outside the lift, saying that it was on maintenance. I'd have to take the stairs.

"What are you up to?" she asked softly.

"Climbing the stairs. The elevator in my apartment is busted," I sighed as I bounded up four stories easily. It didn't affect me one bit. I was used to working out a lot before we came back to Townsville. Exercising didn't really bother me at all.

"Tough without powers huh?" she chuckled. "If only you could fly up there…"

"What would you know?" I grumbled as I pushed the door of the stairwell open and entered the corridor.

"Well, there was once Mojo stole our powers," Buttercup said and started going into the tale of some sleepover the girls had back when they were in kindergarten. Halfway through the story, however, she lost me as my attention was stolen by something else.

The door to our apartment was open.

I walked closer and looked around. The knob had been completely destroyed. I squinted my eyes and picked up a small cylindrical metal piece. Was that a bullet? Panic welled up inside of me. Why was there a bullet at my home? Was the doorknob shot? Who the heck would want to break into the house of someone living in this part of town? It's obvious that we didn't have enough money. I continued standing outside, partly afraid to enter the place if there was an armed person inside.

Fuck! Brick!

"BUTCH!" I heard Buttercup scream into the phone and I blinked, snapping out of my worried trance and turning my attention to her. "Hey, you there?'

Right! Why should I be afraid? I had a Powerpuff on the phone. If something happened, she would fly to my aid… Right?

"I'm here…" I murmured.

"Is everything okay?" I asked.

It was on the tip of my tongue to lie to her but I knew better. I might as well take advantage of the slight friendliness Buttercup had towards me. "Actually, no. Someone shot my doorknob off and left the door open. I'm going in to check. Just stay on the phone."

"Hey hey, that sounds bad. Wait, I'm coming," she said.

"No, it's okay. Just hold on," I said. I pulled the phone away from my ear and entered the apartment. There seemed to be no one inside. I walked around, checking every single room. It was completely empty. I sighed in relief and placed the phone back to my ear.

"All clear. There's no one here," I said, smiling slightly as I threw myself on the sofa.

"Oh. You're alone in there? Sure?" Was it me or did she sound a little concerned?

"I'm alone, don't worry…" I immediately sat up, realizing that it was not okay that I was alone. I dropped the phone on the couch and sprang up, running to Boomer's room. The bed was unmade and when I touched it, it was not cold. He must have been there a while ago. I looked about the room. His jacket and shoes were still there.

But where the hell was he?

"Brick!" I yelled at the top of my voice, running about the house for a moment. It was no use. He obviously wasn't there. I returned to the couch and picked up my phone.

"Hey, BC…"

"Stay the fuck there. I'm coming," she said.

As I waited for her, I looked around Boomer's room. Brick had been sleeping there since we had no money to fix his door. He couldn't have left on his own accord. Why would he leave the place barefooted? I tried my luck at calling his phone but the vibration from the drawer beside me told me that he had left his phone there.

Maybe he really did leave… But I doubted it. After all, there was the shot door to take into consideration.

When Buttercup flew into the room, I was on all fours, searching the floor for any clues. Just as she stepped in, I found something strange. It looked like a medical syringe to me and it was almost empty. Also, on the floor when I found it, there was also a small puddle of green liquid. It must be some kind of drug.

"What's this?" I asked Buttercup, passing it to her.

Buttercup looked at it and frowned. "I dunno… I tried checking around town on my way here. I didn't seen anyone wandering around either. Maybe Brick ran away."

"I seriously hope he ran away instead of…" I trailed off, not wanting to really voice out the worst case scenario. But seriously, who'd want anything to do with Brick? Nobody knew his background as a Rowdyruff and I doubt he made any enemies during this one month. The only people I know who hated Brick to no end were the Powerpuff but why in the world would they need a gun to shoot the door?

"Butch, come on," Buttercup said. "We're going to my house."

I raised my eyebrow. "Why?"

"The Professor isn't around but Bloss is. I think she'd be able to study the liquid and tell us what it is."

Buttercup grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the window, smashing the glass to bits. I opened my mouth in protest but she ignored me. She pulled me along as she flew all the way home and for a moment, I imagined I was flying on my own again. It felt so good. By the time we landed, I had an ironic big smile on my face. I followed Buttercup and she climbed upstairs and threw open the door to a room. She flicked the lights on and walked in. I peeked in.

The room was completely pink. It had pink walls, a pink rug, a pink dressing table, a pink closet with red handles and a bed with pink sheets. Under the duvet, a redhead was snuggled, fast asleep. Buttercup jumped onto her.

"Blossom, wake up! There's an emergency!" Buttercup exclaimed as she shook her older sister.

"What?" Blossom droned as she tried to push the green puff away.

"Someone's been kidnapped!" Buttercup cried out.

Blossom immediately sat up with wide eyes. "Who?!"

"Brick."

Blossom blinked a few times, first in disbelief and then in annoyance, and she threw her head back on the pillow, pulling her covers up. "Call me when there's a _real_ emergency."

"Hey!" I unintentionally blurted out at her lack of concern. But seriously, why was I surprised? Nobody hated Brick more than Blossom and vice-versa.

Blossom opened her eyes and she glared past Buttercup and at me. "Why are you here?" she snapped, still lying down.

"I brought him here," Buttercup replied. "Come on. His door got shot and his brother is missing. There's no way it's safe for him to be there."

Blossom sat up again and mover herself to lean on the backrest of her bed. She rubbed her head tiredly. "So Brick got kidnapped? Who the hell wants him anyway? HIM? Mojo? The Gangreen Gang?"

I winced at Blossom's sarcasm. Buttercup flew over to me and took the syringe out of my hands. She tossed it at Blossom, who caught it with ease. "We were hoping you'd take a look at the liquid since the Professor isn't here," Buttercup said.

Blossom narrowed her eyes at me, completely ignoring her sister. "What's in it for me if I help your brother?" she asked.

"I don't know… What do you want?" I sighed in exasperation. I never realized how hard dealing with Blossom was and I wondered how Brick managed fighting with her every time we met. He must have had the patience of a saint… Or maybe he just punched her whenever she got annoying…

"It's okay. I'll get something from him," she said after a long pause. She flew off her bed and pushed past me.

Blossom led the way to the Professor's lab with Buttercup and me following behind her silently. Although it seemed weird as the girls were my mortal enemies, I found myself trusting them completely. Deciding that it would be better to shut the hell up in Blossom's presence as she would not hesitate to eyebeam me at all. Ironically, I felt safer around the violent and reckless Buttercup.

I mean, hey, she did kind of show some concern for me, unlike someone...

Blossom meddled with some of the stuff in the lab and the syringe as Buttercup and I simply stood behind her, waiting and watching. I had no idea what she was doing. It all looked so foreign to me. Like seriously, what the hell is Chemistry, even?

"Hmm... The chemical concentration in this liquid highly resembles that of a sleeping pill. It must be some sleep inducing drug," she murmured thoughtfully.

"So whoever the kidnapper is, he got Brick asleep so he could get him out of the house? Why?" Buttercup asked.

"Well, he's Brick. The kidnapper obviously knew what he was like. Powers or not, he would definitely put up a fight. Perhaps he or she might even think that he he still has his powers," Blossom said. She sighed and crossed her arms. "Well, that's all I can do. I'm going back to sleep."

"Wait no!" I cried out immediately. "You have to help me!"

Come on, man. I mean, we're civilians now. I hadn't done anything bad in a long time too... Except maybe steal a condom or something... But Brick had been a law-abiding citizen for over ten years now. Wasn't it the job of the Powerpuffs in the first place to protect citizens?

"There's no loss in helping them," Buttercup murmured. "Don't you kind of pity him? I mean, look at him! He has no one."

Wait... Was that what it was all about all this while? _Pity_?

"He's a Rowdyruff..." Blossom pointed out weakly. Perhaps she realized that her argument was somewhat invalid. After all, so what if we were Rowdyruffs? I mean, we didn't harm anyone ever since we got back to Townsville. Rather, we were the one taking the harm!

"Come on, Bloss. Think about Brick owing you something. You can get him to do _anything_ after this!" Buttercup pointed out.

Blossom sighed again and let her hands drop to her side. "Okay, okay. Just this once. Don't expect me to come helping you the next time something happens!" She huffed and turned away, focusing back on all those apparatus she had been using. She started keeping them and Buttercup and I watched in silence again.

"Do you have any idea who would want to kidnap Brick?" Buttercup asked, turning to me and breaking the long awkward silence.

"I don't think anyone knows that we returned. No one recognizes us even," I said, recalling how no one seemed to bat an eye from fear anymore. Back when we were kids, people were terrified of us.

"How about a villain? Anyone might recognize you," Buttercup pointed out. "I'm guessing it's HIM."

HIM did steal our powers...

"HIM wouldn't need a drug. It seems more like Mojo to me since he is the only one capable of inventing such a drug," Blossom replied, correcting her sister. "The Gangreen Gang has split up and I don't think they even know of the existence of such drugs, much less create them. Sedusa will not use a drug. She'd seduce him. Femme Fatale wouldn't even want to associate herself with the Rowdyruff _Boys_. Did I miss anyone out?"

"Princess Morbucks?" Buttercup wondered.

"Nah, she has no reason to kidnap him. I mean, he's her boyfriend anyway," I replied.

"So Mojo?" Buttercup asked.

"Mojo," Blossom agreed. "How about we pay a dormant volcano a visit now?"

Buttercup and I nodded and the three of us left the house. Thankfully, the girls were considerate enough to go there on foot. We walked over to the park in silence and headed to Mojo's observatory. We climbed the volcano quickly and knocked the front door. There was no answer.

Well, it was 3am. Mojo was most probably asleep.

Buttercup raised her foot and gave a swift kick to the door, knocking it down completely. The two girls hovered in and I followed behind them on foot. Mojo's lair was dark but it looked nothing like how I had remembered it to be. There existed not a single trace of technology in it, with the exception of normal household appliances. I immediately started doubting our earlier conclusion as we walked over to his bed.

Mojo looked old, like damn fucking 'I'm-on-my-deathbed' kind of old. His mouth was slightly open as he snored, showing his half-decayed teeth, with some missing even.

"MOJO!" Buttercup screamed at the top of her lungs as she shook the monkey violently. The poor old monkey sat up with a shrill cry and stumbled out of bed. He stared at the three of us in confusion until recognition flickered through his eyes. If there was something that was still ever-present in his eyes since back then was the intelligence, now seemingly morphing into wisdom as well.

"Blossom, Buttercup," he greeted with a slight nod of his head. He then turned to me. "And you must be Butch."

Wow, he recognized me!

"Yeah... Sup," I greeted calmly.

"So you are back in town... How are your brothers?" he asked me.

Huh? How are my brothers? Wait a minute. He didn't even know that we were back in town so how in the world did he even kidnap Brick?

"Mojo, do you recognize this?" Blossom asked as she passed him a bottle of liquid. It took me a moment to recognize it as the drug that we had found in the syringe.

Mojo took it and sniffed. "Ah, an old invention. It was a sleeping medicine which I used when I had insomnia."

Buttercup smirked and she raised her fist. However, Blossom stepped in front of her, stopping Buttercup from attacking the old monkey. "Mojo, we believe that Brick was kidnapped and we found this syringe in his room. We suspect that the kidnapper had used it on him."

Mojo blinked. "_Brick_ is kidnapped? Brick? The leader of the Rowdyruff boys?" he wondered, displaying his confusion without any form of concealment.

"Yes, Brick," I said.

"Do you happen to know who else, except for you, has access to this drug?" Blossom asked.

"Well, firstly, I do not have access to it, at least not anymore. Secondly, I sold it off to many people in my most recent yard sale. It was years ago. I can't recall who bought what," he said.

"Do you remember who even came for the sale?" Buttercup groaned.

"Young and old, good and evil, rich and poor. There were a lot of people," he said, shaking his head. "But what I do know is that whoever kidnapped Brick is probably well aware of what he or she is up to. It might not be a mere case of holding a grudge or hating him because even these people know better than to underestimate the Rowdyruffs."

"But we lost our powers," I blurted out. Mojo looked at me, blinking in disbelief, and I found it an obligation to explain, considering that he was my original creator. As such, I ended up recounting the tale of us losing our powers to him. Mojo sat on his bed as he rubbed his chin.

"That person might actually know that he has no powers," Mojo said. "Using the drug is one thing but with Chemical X, Brick should be able to overcome it easily. Anyone knows that the six of you are much much stronger than the average human. I firmly believe that the kidnapper knows of your predicament."

"But only the six of us know of our predicament! I know it's not these two and it doesn't make sense for Boomer and Bubbles to kidnap him either. Heck, it doesn't make sense for any one of us to kidnap him using a fucking drug!" I cried out.

"Did Brick tell anyone else about having lost his powers?" Blossom wondered.

"No. Why would he?" I grumbled.

Blossom frowned. "Boomer told Bubbles that you lost your powers for no particular reason at all either, except for maybe whatever they had between them... What if Brick told his own Bubbles?"

"Why would Brick tell Bubbles?"

Blossom looked at me like I was an idiot. Buttercup started sniggering beside me. "What I meant was," Blossom sighed, "what if Brick told his girlfriend, Princess?"

Okay, I really felt like an idiot then.

"Why would Princess kidnap Brick?" Buttercup snapped. "They're in love, aren't they?!"

"No, Brick detests her," I corrected.

"Maybe Princess wants him to love her as much as she loves him," Buttercup suggested.

Blossom sighed once again. "My point it, idiots, she might have blabbered it on to one of her many minions and the message may have been passed around. Someone from the past may have heard it and gone after him."

The four of us stared at each other, deep in thought, but for some reason, my mind kept on wandering over to Princess. I had overheard her conversations with Brick before and it had occurred to me that Princess was well aware of his lack of affection towards her. I remembered her mentioning that Brick was 'missing out on an experience' if he continued to choose not to devote himself to her. There was also another thing that had been bothering me and it was her possessiveness. Yes, yes, I know it's bad to eavesdrop on people's conversation but hey, I was worried for my older brother! I remember her saying that she would not let anyone (including me, by the way) get within a five metre radius of him as he was 'strictly hers'.

Could Princess had kidnapped him because she wants him all to herself?

Nah. She was too in love with him to do such a thing. I mean, kidnapping is bad. It can cause permanent damage to the victim!

In the end, even with Mojo's and Blossom's brains, we were unable to conclude who he's kidnappers were. As much as I hated it, Blossom was right when she said that we should get some rest. After all, kidnappers usually demanded for ransoms and all. We were yet to hear from the kidnapped. We decided to continue the search another day.

As for me, Buttercup suggested that I lived with the girls for the moment since the door to my apartment was broken and the kidnapper could possibly try to come after me. Of course, Blossom disagreed. In the end, Buttercup offered her room floor to me.

Well, it could be worse.

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><p><strong>I felt this was a little too dialogue-based? I don't know... Did you guys find it okay? Anyway, I want to thank all my readers and also, just a heads up: I've got this like... Major exam coming up so my updates might not be as frequent. I need to step up my time management and focus on the more important shit... Although this kinda feels more important to me... Heh heh... But, just a short notice in case I disappear on you guys. I hope you guys won't mind. :) I promise more good stuff awaits you, dear readers, after this Brick kidnap arc. I've got it all planned. <strong>

**P.S. I hope everyone likes the blooming Greens. Red fans (if there are any) please remain patient. There _will_ be Reds. I mean like, damn I ship Reds more than I ship every other couple combined. They are most probably my favourite childhood pair, man. Well, it's going to be fun writing them. Look forward guys!**


	11. Chapter 9: Brick

**Well, hey guys. It's been awhile. I want to apologise for this really late update. I had exams and annoying stuff like that. But they're over and I should be more or less updating this thing a lot more frequent. It won't be as frequent as I used to because I have tons of homework for the holidays as well as a lot of catching up to do on my work. But well, I'll try to make it decently frequent (if this even makes sense). **

** Well, without further ado, here's chapter 9.**

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><p>My head was throbbing. I tried to open my eyes and I felt as if my whole world was spinning around me. I closed my eyes again, afraid that I might end up puking on myself. I could feel my hands being pulled high above my head. Cool air was brushing on the skin of my right hand. What happened to my cast? I opened my eyes again and blinked a few times, trying to get used to the place.<p>

Where was I?

It seemed to be in a room... No, some underground dungeon cell. I saw a metal door directly in front of me. The room was rather small, with no windows and the only source of light being the lightbulb hanging overhead. I started feeling uncomfortable. I was no way claustrophobic but the place was getting to me.

I looked down. I was still in the pair of sweatpants I normally wear to sleep. My feet were bare. Unlike my hands, my legs were free to move. I tried to stand up but my knees gave way under me. I tried to rattle my hands free of their constraints. I heard jiggling and clanking as metal hit metal but I was not free. All that happened was a sharp pain shot through my injured hand.

As my mind reeled, trying to recall what events had transpired prior to me waking up, I heard the sounds of footsteps from outside the room. The heavy metal door swung open slowly and noisily, revealing a silhouette of a teenage girl. Wait a minute. Was that Princess?

"Hey baby. Are you feeling comfortable?" she cooed. She strutted up to my provocatively and knelt down in front of me. I looked away in annoyance. I mean, you can't just chain me up and expect me to go all nice to you. Princess lightly took my chin and turned me to face her. She leaned forward and I felt our lips meet. I didn't kiss her back and in fact, I actually tried to pull away. But her grip on my chin was surprisingly strong and my head did not manage to budge away from her.

I knew that Princess had no powers but she did have super suits that enhanced her strength.

"What are you doing? Let me go," I growled at her.

Princess stood up and turned away from me, her hands clasped together behind her back. "Oh... Well, I just needed to make sure that my Brickie isn't touched by anyone else but me. So I brought you here, to my secret underground hideout."

"You kidnapped me," I spat.

"No, my dear. I am protecting you... From the vicious claws of those Powderpuffs," she spat back, turning to me with gleaming red eyes. Holy crap. Since when did Princess even have red eyes?

"The girls haven't done anything, I assure you!" I insisted. Okay, that was somewhat a lie but hell, I was willing to do anything to get out of there. My injured arm had already started to hurt badly.

"I don't see how looking through your underwear drawer is nothing, Brick... Or are you cheating on me?" she hissed, turning around and bending down so that our faces were levelled.

"Let me go!" I roared at her, trying to pul away from my captivity. Princess flashed a smirk and rested her hand against my right arm before pushing it back. I grimaced at the pain, stilling my struggles instantly.

Fuck.

"Poor Brick. Doesn't your arm hurt? I wish you would stop hurting your beautiful body," she sighed lovingly. Erm... 'Lovingly'.

"It's my body," I muttered, looking away.

Princess leaned forward until her mouth was at my ear. "That's where you're wrong, baby. Your body belongs to me. You belong to me... And I like all my belonging at tip-top condition," she whispered. Princess got up, smiled widely at me and turned to walk off. I stared quietly as she left the room, her ass shaking seductively as she disappeared out of the door. The door was slammed shut behind her and I heard a bolt turn. From above me, the lightbulb's light vanished. Wow. Did they have some control outside?

Shit. I had to get out somehow. But without my powers, I was hopeless. I couldn't see in the dark. I couldn't laser eyebeam anything. Heck, I couldn't even get out of my captive.

Maybe Butch would have gone to the police and they would be searching for me...

Immediately after that popped up, my brain pushed it away. There was no way that would happen. Butch would go to anyone but the police, especially since we could not risk our backgrounds being discovered. If the police found out that I was the leader of the Rowdyruffs, there was no doubt that they would come searching for me. However, I was pretty sure after they found me, I would be thrown into life imprisonment or something.

That aside, I bet even if the police tried to find me without knowing my background, they would be deterred by Princess and her connections, no doubt.

... I wondered if Butch even noticed I was gone. I figured that he did but what if he thought I had decided to leave like Boomer did? Princess had offered me a place to stay umpteen times, even in Butch's presence. Could he have thought that I finally decided to take up on her offer and go with her? As appealing as it had sounded to me considering the luxuries that came along with it, there was no way I could go and leave Butch, even when we were having problems. I was, after all, his elder brother and leader.

At some point in time, I fell asleep. When I woke up, Princess was seated beside me, her legs turned away from us as she leaned forward, staring at me. She was wearing a tank top and trust me, when she sat like that, it was obvious to the whole world that she was wearing nothing underneath. What was even more obvious was that she was intentionally doing this to attract me. As much as I didn't want to admit, I had to force myself to tear my eyes off her blatant cleavage and look into her eyes.

Wait a second. Her eyes were back to their usual brown colour. So the red was some sort of contact?

"What do you want?" I snapped at her.

"Oh Brickie, I just want to talk," she mused. She rested her palm on my leg and shifted closer. "How's your day?"

"I have been locked in here for so long. How do you think my day has been?" I growled.

She smiled and raised herself up to kiss me. I made no attempts to kiss her back or to pull away. She stopped, looked into my eyes and smiled. "I know you love it. Your amazing girlfriend is taking such good care of you, isn't she?"

"Fuck you," I muttered, turning away from her. There was no way I wanted any further association with her already. Someone get me out, please!

"Right now? Sure," she replied, grinning like a madman (or woman, whatever).

She couldn't be serious... Oh but she was. The next thing I knew, she was sitting on my lap, straddling me and staring intently at me.

Shit shit shit.

"Get off me!" I snapped, trying to wriggle under her. Princess giggled and she kissed me again, this time, pressing herself against me till I could feel myself pushed against the wall behind me.

"Brick isn't getting turned on at all," she pouted, looking down at my crotch area. "Do I have to step up my game?"

Growling, I lifted my knee and flipped the bottom half of myself, successfully managing to throw her off, but at the expense of my arm. Amidst my hissing, I pulled my knees up, preventing her from being able to straddle me anymore. Princess sat up, gasping and stared at me murderously. Her eyes started blazing red again.

Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. Although I wasn't in love with her or anything, that did not mean that I had no idea how she looked. Princess had brown eyes, not red.

"It appears my Brickie doesn't want me anymore, does he?" she cooed, crawling over to me. She ran a finger along my jaw before tilting my head to look at her completely. Her eyes weren't just red. Her pupils had shrunk, making her resemble a cat, or a demon.

Wait, hold it.

A demon?

Could it be?

"It was you," I found myself blurting out despite better judgement. "HIM! It was you all along, wasn't it?!"

Princess' brows furrowed. "Him? What are you talking about, baby? It's me, Princess Morbucks."

"Shut up! I know it's you! What the fuck do you want with us?!" I cried out. Despite better judgement (again), I headbutted her, making her sprawl backwards. I had no idea why I hadn't realised from the start. I should have known from those gleaming red eyes that it was HIM all along. He had been in her mind, controlling her every action. I didn't know if Princess really had a thing for me or if she really was possessive, but what I did know is that the kidnapping was all HIM's idea.

Which also meant that, without my powers, I was absolutely hopeless. From his ultra-dimension Underworld place, HIM was all-seeing. Even if I managed to somehow escape from my captive and sneak pass Princess' guards (impossible, I know, but hey, a man can dream), HIM will be able to see it. I was could do nothing.

But fuck it. I was Brick, for crying out loud! I was the leader of the once-great Rowdyruff Boys. There was no way in hell that I was going to give up. I had to escape.

Princess had gotten to her feet again. She stared at me as she dusted her clothes.

"I should have known better than to get you involved in this," she said, her voice morphing entirely to mimic that of HIM's. "The leader of the Rowdyruffs is obviously smarter than he lets off, not that it's any surprise though. After all, you are _her_ counterpart."

"So it is you!" I cried out. "What do you want from us?"

"What do I want from you?" HIM gasped, after which he started bellowing like an overlord. "I want nothing from you. All I want is something that I had wanted from a long time. You are merely one of the many pawns of mine. But I should have given you another job. I think Butch would have fulfilled your role much better."

Butch? No way...

"What do you intend to do to him?" I yelled. "Leave him alone!"

"Too late. Butch and Boomer are already part of my plan, just as you are," he huffed. "Isn't it wonderful, knowing that you're a part of something that would lead to the end of the Powerpuff Girls? Wasn't that what you wanted- the destruction of the Powerpuffs?"

"You mean, all of these- stealing our powers, giving me that gun, kidnapping me- were for the sole purpose of destroying them?"

HIM, still as Princess, smirked at me and he flicked Princess' hair, twirling himself around. Princess' frilly skirt flowed along with her, giving me sight to something many would die to see. I frowned, realising that HIM hadn't given up his plan of using Princess to get to me. What he wanted exactly from me, I did not know.

"Of course not, my dear ungrateful son," he sneered. "Destroying the girls is just part of it. In the end, what I really, really want is to send the world to bouts of despair. I want to unleash the beginning of my reign. I will rule a world which is so depressing, so so depressing, that it would give me ultimate power. After all, others' sorrow is my greatest relish."

"You're fucked up, man." That was all I said. My mind was reeling from what I had heard. HIM was planning to destroy the world as it is and to unleash his rule on everyone? Was there not enough sorrow around as it was? Wars, natural disasters, humanitarian issues and stuff like that plague the world and it still was not enough for him?

"I don't think you're any less fucked up," he countered. "After all, you were made by me."

"No, I was made by Mojo," I hissed at him.

"In a prison toilet bowl out of snips, snails and a puppy dog's tail," HIM scoffed. "You, just like your brothers as well as the Powerpuff Girls, are the really fucked up ones. In truth, you are creatures- or rather, abominations pulled right out of a science-fiction novel."

HIM reached into Princess' pocket and pulled out a key. He walked over to me and I heard some clicking noises before the constraints around my wrists vanished and my arms fell to my sides. My right arm was not hurting anymore. In fact, it had gone entirely numb.

"Let's play a game Brickie boy," he cooed. "I give you five minutes to escape this place. If you do, good for you. If not, I will find you and I will kill you."

I felt my throat go dry and I had to fight my fear to speak up. "Kill me? What for...? I thought I was a pawn of some sort?"

"Your death will come in handy," HIM replied. We stared at each other for a long while before he started grinning like a maniac. "Time is ticking."

I immediately got up to my feet and shoved him away. I ran for the door and out. There was no trace of any guards. Well, whatever, that just made it easier for me to escape. I rushed down the corridor and up a flight of stairs. Upstairs, I immediately felt my hopes shatter right in front of my eyes. I was in someplace big and lavish. Initially, I thought it was Princess' mansion but would HIM be so dumb as to bring me somewhere so obvious? Then again, Princess had countless mansions all over the world. I could be in any one of them.

Then I got it. HIM knew that I would not be able to find the exit in five minutes. Even if I did, it would be out of pure luck. There was no way he intended to let me live after he told me about his plans. No, he made up his mind to discard me the moment I identified him. He had made a mistake in underestimating me. Whatever it was, his plan could only work if no one identified him.

Fine. If I was going to die, so be it. But that did not mean I was going to let anything happen to Butch and Boomer. Fuck the rest of the world. I was no hero so I couldn't save everyone but that did not mean I wouldn't die trying to protect my little brothers.

In five minutes (lesser, to be honest), I had to find a phone.

And thank god I did. It took me awhile to run around the place and find a phone. I was sure that most of my time was up all ready. Boomer would definitely not answer my call. He hadn't made any attempt to communicate with us ever since he disappeared. That only left Butch.

The phone rang for a long time before he finally picked up.

"Hello?" said a rather tired voice at the other end of the line.

"Butch, it's me."

"Brick?!"

"Listen to me, I'm kidnapped-"

"Fucking hell!" he cut in. "Who did it? Where are you? Should I call the police?"

"Shut up and listen!" I snapped at him. "Listen, it's HIM. He has this plan about wanting to destroy the world. All of us are his little puppets, important parts of his plan. Look, Butch, I need you to get out of Townsville as fast as possible. I don't care how but you have to. It's for your own good."

"HIM?!" Butch asked. "Brick... What about you? Where are you?"

I couldn't possibly tell him I was going to die, could I? It would make him worry, or worse, it would make him try to find me. If Butch ended up in HIM's grasp as well, HIM could easily kill him and move on to Boomer. There would be no one to warn Boomer as well.

"I don't know where I am but I'm safe. I've escaped. I'll call you again. Before that, just keep running," I replied. I heard my voice crack and I could feel my palms started sweating. I didn't want to die. I really didn't.

"Brick, where are you, really?" Butch asked and I felt my facade fall apart.

"I don't know."

_Oh Brick... Your time is up... Any last words, my boy?_

I swallowed at HIM's voice that was ringing in my head and let out a long sigh. Well, this was it. I was going to die.

Before I hung up the phone, I heard Butch's voice.

"Scream."

Even though it was entirely against my masculine pride, I did so.

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><p><strong>To whoever who have been diligently following up my work, here's me expressing my utmost gratitude and joy at your support! Please feel free to r&amp;r, constructive criticisms are welcomed, as usual. <strong>

**I'd also like to clarify that there isn't any love between Butch and Buttercup at the moment. They're lusting for each other, sure, but no romantic feelings as of the moment and there won't be till quite a lot of other chapter. For Bubbles and Boomer fans, please hold on a while, we'd get back to them in a moment once this whole kidnapping episode comes to an end. **

**After all, the two of them are happily living a peaceful life in Citiesville... Or are they? ;)**


	12. Chapter 10: Blossom

I heard it a few moments after Butch hung up the phone. From the way he sounded so distraught and helpless, I knew it wasn't just because we had told him to scream. Something was happening there.

"I hear him," Buttercup said. "Let's go, Bloss."

"Wait," Butch interjected. "Bring me along, please."

Brick's screams were getting louder and more strained and I had a feeling that something bad was happening to him. After all, he was kidnapped by HIM and I never actually knew what HIM was capable of.

But then again, it was Brick he had in custody. He was the supreme leader of the Rowdyruffs. There was no way he would scream over something trivial. Whatever HIM was up to, it had to be bad. For some strange reason, I felt that we needed to step in. Even though the victim was a hated nemesis, it felt like this was all part of something bigger.

"It's dangerous though," I warned. "Are you sure, Butch?"

"Please," he begged, "I want to help my brother."

"Very well. BC, bring him along," I said as I flew out of the house. Buttercup followed behind me, holding onto Butch's arms as we zapped off towards the direction of Brick's screams. For some strange reason, we were flying away from Townsville and headed towards the forest. Brick's screams were getting louder and they weren't just screams anymore. I could hear his pleas for help and mercy and subconsciously, I sped up. Just what was going on over there to traumatize Brick?

We ended up flying towards a cave. At the mouth of the rocky cavern, we got on our foot and walked in. After some distance, we found ourselves facing a large metal door. I took a step back and let Buttercup take the honours of kicking it down. It didn't take much. One kick was all it took for the metal circle to fly off its hinges, forming an opening for us. It also made Brick's voice clearer as well as reveal the voice of the dreadful HIM.

Buttercup and I exchanged looks and we flew in slowly. We soon found ourselves in some underground hideout. Unlike the typical underground hideouts, this one was well-designed and lavish in its appearance. It had velvet seats with intricately carved wooden frames, marble tables and even a crystal chandelier.

_Please… I don't want to die._

Brick!

I looked around the place as I flew in direction of the voice with Buttercup and Butch close behind me. Where was this place? Did HIM live here? I honestly thought he lived in some alternate dimension. No, I was positive that he lived some place else.

"Princess," Butch muttered.

That made sense. This place could possibly belong to Princess. But did that mean that Princess was in cahoots with HIM?

_Beg all you want Brickie. One snap of my claws is all it takes to end your life. Any last words?_

What? At top speed, I rushed towards the voice. I saw a door and I charged at it. The door broke at impact and I found myself in a dimly lit room. HIM was there in the flesh. In one of his hideously monstrous claw, he held Brick by the neck. Brick was holding onto the claw with one hand, the other hanging limply by his side, as he writhed about in the demon's grip. His clothes were torn and tattered. His body was bloodied and bruised. His eyes spoke of giving up but from the way he was struggling, I knew that he had no intention to merely wait for death.

Well, that was Brick for you.

"Not so fast, HIM!" I cried out, pointing at him, as Buttercup joined my by my side. "What do you think you're up to?"

"Oh my, this is an unexpected twist indeed," he cooed. He released his hold on Brick and the redheaded Rowdyruff crumpled onto the floor without moving anymore. "I didn't expect the Powerpuffs to come barging in to save the poor Ruff leader."

"Kidnapping is a serious crime, no matter who you kidnap!" Buttercup snapped. "Attempted murder is ten times worse."

I heard footsteps and Butch came in as well. His eyes widened at the sight of the brother as he let out a despaired cry. However, the sight of HIM stopped him from running to the aid of his older brother.

"Killing him can wait," HIM growled. "Now I have bigger problem and that's to destroy the two of you."

"You can never do that and you know it!" Buttercup hissed.

HIM grinned maniacally and something told me that he had something up his sleeves. He raised his hands- erm, claws- and started chanting deviously. It sounded foreign, yet so familiar. Was that Latin? Red smoke began appearing all around us and much to our surprise, hands started appearing out of the ground. Along with those hands came heads, bodies, legs and even tails. We ended up staring at a hoard of monsters… No wait. They were demons.

HIM laughed devilishly and vanished right before our eyes, leaving us with those creatures. I looked at Brick, who was still lying unconscious and then to Butch.

"Get your brother out of here!" I instructed. Butch blinked, momentarily frightened, before he ran forward. He picked Brick up easily, threw the smaller body over his shoulder and ran out at top speed. Buttercup and I flew up and got ready to fight.

However, no matter what we did, it was not good enough. Those creatures were not scathed by our punches, kicks, laser eyebeams and other abilities we could manage. They continued rushing at us at the top of their strength.

"What the fuck are these things?" Buttercup gasped as she jumped away from a few flailing claws.

"Whatever they are, we are no match for them," I replied. "Let's go. Our main priority is getting Brick to a hospital."

Buttercup seemed as if she was about to argue but I gave her no choice and I grabbed her collar and started pulling her away from the demons. They ran after us and even though we were pretty fast, they were catching up.

Once we were outside of the cave, we found Butch waiting for us, along with an unconscious Brick. We grabbed our respective counterparts and flew off. For the first time in a long time, I felt fear- real, genuine fear. It was the same thing I felt back went we were initially ostracized by Townsville or whenever the Rowdyruffs managed to almost trash us.

What were those things?

We landed at the hospital and we got Brick admitted. Honestly, Brick looked terrible when I carried him back. His skin was pale and splotched with bluish-blackish bruises all about. His neck was bleeding, no doubt from being cut by HIM's claws. From the soaked t-shirt of his, I could tell that he had lost a lot of blood. His breathing was haggard and he sounded as if he was almost wheezing.

I didn't know much about medicine and first-aid but he looked really bad.

It was about an hour or two before the doctor got back to us (yeah, yeah, so BC and I decided to wait along with Butch, no big deal, really!). Brick was in critical condition. Aside from his external injuries, he also had internal injuries, inclusive of internal haemorrhaging as well as a few broken ribs.

The doctor, Dr Smith, had pulled me aside and spoke to me briefly, his voice sombre and worried.

"Blossom, for such cases, we would normally pass it to the police to investigate but since you and your sister have brought him here, I leave it up to you to decide your course of action," he stated.

"Is it bad?" I asked, feeling a little worried. What? He could die.

"I'm afraid, he's in a very bad condition. He's lost a lot of blood and as he is, his body is already very weak," Dr Smith explained. "I have to give it to him for making it this far. He has fought well but I don't know how long he would live. Honestly, such terrible injuries usually lead to death."

I glanced at Butch who was pacing up and down the length of the hospital corridor and my heart went out to him despite the fact that he used to be an enemy. It had to be tough for him. His oldest brother was fighting for his life while the other one was nowhere in sight. In a way, he was all alone.

"Is there anything you can do?" I asked Dr Smith. "Don't worry about the cost."

"We will try our best, Blossom, but no guarantees," he sighed as he ran his hand through his greying hair. "This boy… How are you acquainted with him again?"

"He's… An old friend," I lied.

"I see. I'll try my best."

As Dr Smith walked back into the ICU, Butch ran over to me. He grabbed my arm and started shaking it. "What did he say?" he asked.

For a moment, I was speechless. I had no idea what to tell Butch. He seemed to have a lot on his mind and I didn't know if he could manage the truth. I knew it would be bad if I gave him false hope and Brick ended up dying but at the same time, he looked so down that I feared that if I told him his brother was on the brink of death, he would end up falling apart. So I faked a smile.

"They're not sure when he'll wake up but he's fighting well," I said to him. That wasn't exactly a lie, but it wasn't the truth either. "Butch, you look tired. I think you should go home, wash up and rest. Buttercup told me you haven't been sleeping ever since Brick went missing."

She didn't actually need to tell me that though. The green Ruff's eyebags were evidence enough.

"But Brick…"

"Blossom and I will be here. We'll leave when you get back," Buttercup said as she joined the two of us. Butch gave us an appreciative look before he ran off. After a while, Buttercup crossed her arms and I could see her looking at me from the corner of her eyes. "What did the doctor _really_ say?"

I took a deep breath. "He doesn't know if Brick would survive," I replied.

"Ouch," Buttercup muttered. "Wonder what HIM did to him."

I shook my head. "No, the real question is, what did HIM _want_ with him? What does HIM even want? What were those monster-demon-things? Why didn't he summon them before?"

"Bloss, you know, I'm worried for Bubbles," Buttercup murmured. "What if HIM is targeting the boys for some personal reason? She's with Boomer now in god-knows-where. If he sends those things to her, it'll be hell."

"She's at Citiesville," I muttered.

"What?"

"I'm positive she's there. I've always been," I admitted. "I just didn't know if going to bring her back was the best idea. I mean, I bet she wants to be with Boomer."

"With Brick in this condition, bringing them back would be a good idea," Buttercup pointed out. "If he really dies, I bet Boomer would want to see him."

For some reason, the thought of Brick dying made me feel uneasy. Strange, seeing as how I always thought that his death would mean eternal peace for me. It was tough having a bossy, overbearing and loud counterpart and thought himself to be better than the rest of the world. Sure, he had mellowed down but he was still the bane of my existence.

Why did I even help him? That's right, so he would be in debt to me and I could make him do whatever I wanted him to do.

That's right, Brick, you better not die.

"This feels weird," Buttercup said, breaking the train of my thoughts. "Why am I worrying about the boys? I'm supposed to hate them."

"Well, that's new," I mused. "The BC I know rarely worries about anyone, much more her hated enemies."

"It's unsightly though. Seeing him all beaten up and on the brink of death thanks to one of his so-called fathers," Buttercup spat.

"They're evil villains," I reminded her.

"Do you think Brick, Boomer and Butch are like that to?" she asked.

Once upon a time, I would have said yes immediately but now, I wasn't so sure anymore.

"They should be, right?" I sighed.

"Have they given up crime entirely or is it because they're no match for us anymore?" Buttercup asked. "I don't know whether to trust them or not."

"Well, if Mojo can give up crime, why not them?" I pointed out. At the same time, I wasn't so sure. Apparently, there were also villains like HIM who obviously had not given up anything at all, which brought me back to my previous question- what did HIM want? Why did he kidnap Brick? Why did he go underground for all those years, only to surface now? Did the return of the boys play any significant role to it?

For some reason, I had an inkling that Brick knew something, which was why HIM tried to kill him. In other words, for us to really understand what HIM's motives were, we needed to make sure that Brick didn't die. Brick needed to survive.

Not only that, he needed to remember what had happened.

"BC," I murmured, "we have to make sure nothing happens to Brick. Whatever it is, we need him alive."

Buttercup frowned at my words but she didn't object. She knew better than to question my words. I was, after all, always a step or two ahead of everyone else. She nodded and gave me a weak, almost questioning, smile.

"What do you intend to do?" she asked.

"I have an idea that could possibly save his life," I replied. "While I go get what I need, I want you to fly to Citiesville and get Bubbles and Boomer back at all costs."

* * *

><p><strong>Well, this is kinda a short chapter but I made up for it by uploading two! :D Anyway, I didn't realize that my previous doc was a little screwed up so the previous chapter was a little messed up with regard to the italics and all. I sorted them out already anyway, so yeah. <strong>


	13. Chapter 11: Boomer

It started off well but after a week or two, things started to go downhill. Bubbles and I, despite our mutual attraction to each other, never made it official. So in other words, there was no commitment in our relationship, something which some asshole decided to take advantage of.

See, Bubbles worked in this place called Sun Paradise. The employees there were all not from Citiesville so she felt totally at home, unlike me at my work place. She got along well with everybody, not a surprise, considering that she was Bubbles.

And well, I couldn't help but feel that I had competition.

Occasionally, I would stop by Sun Paradise for lunch or dinner and Bubbles would make me something for free. I had seen her interactions with her fellow co-workers and there was one guy that absolutely got on my nerves. His name was Ted and I could tell he had a thing for her.

However, this 'thing' of his wasn't love or an innocent crush. He wanted more. I could tell it from the predatory way he observed her, like his eyes were undressing her.

Naturally, it worried me. When I brought it up to Bubbles, she dismissed it, saying that I was looking too much into things.

And that, was the biggest reason why I didn't quite like going to Sun Paradise.

But well, I had to because I promised Bubbles I'd stop by occasionally.

So on the day our temporary life came to an end, I was standing outside the café, sighing, before I pushed the door and walked in. I saw no sign of Bubbles but Ted was there.

"Hey, you!" he greeted me, grinning widely.

Forcing myself not to scowl, I walked over to him and slipped on the seat right in front of him, mumbling a half-hearted greeting.

"So, do you want anything to eat?" he asked.

"No. I'm just waiting for Bubbles," I said plainly.

"She's inside, washing the plates," he replied. He eyed me for a moment before he leaned forward, resting his arms on the top of the counter. "So tell, me, Boomer, what's your story?"

"My story?" I wondered dumbly.

"Where are you from? What's your family like? How many siblings do you have? All those shit."

I frowned at Ted's sudden interest in me and I shrugged. "I'm from Townsville, like Bubbles, and I have two brothers, one older and one younger."

Ted narrowed his eyes and nodded. "I used to be from Townsville too. But I left after my sister was killed."

"Your sister was killed?"

"Yeah, a long time ago, Townsville was terrible, with hoards of bad people running around. A group of them killed my sister," Ted recalled. "You should know, since you're from there."

Of course I knew. I happened to be a part of those bad people. Of course, I never recalled killing anybody.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I lied. "I only moved to Townsville quite recently."

Ted shrugged and pulled back, still eyeing me doubtfully but before any of us could say anything, Bubbles came out. As bubbly as ever, she skipped over to me and hugged me tightly, kissing me lightly on my cheek.

God, I loved her, though I never spoke up and admitted it.

"Hey Boomie!" she squealed. "I'm done with my shift already. Shall we go?"

"Yeah sure," I replied.

Bubbles waved goodbye to all her colleagues and the two of us walked out of the café. Along the way, we stopped by the park. The two of us sat on a bench and looked up at the sky. The sky was a mix of orange and pink and in the horrible depressing town of Citiesville, it was the only thing that seemed cheerful and alive. Even the plants in the park seemed depressing, with their droopy leaves and the shadows they casted about.

"I want to fly up there again," I mumbled, reaching out towards the sky.

Bubbles leaned against my shoulder, pressing herself close to me. "I do too," she whispered. "Do you miss your powers?"

"I just miss flying," I replied honestly. "My powers don't really mean anything to me after I've given up evil. But flying... Man, it felt so amazing."

"So free," she added with a sigh. "Boomer, I hate this place."

"I do too... But if we go back..."

"We can't be together," she said, voicing out what I didn't say. I looked at her and realized that she was already looking at me. Bubbles reached forward and placed her hand against my cheek. I smiled weakly at her as she started to stroke my face softly.

"I hate this place but I like us," she said. She leaned forward, closing her eyes. I closed my eyes as I felt her lips meet mine. We shared a long kiss in the open, enjoying the closeness we shared, only pulling apart when we heard shuffling in the bushes. Bubbles frowned and stood up, looking around.

"Hello? Anyone there?" she called out.

"That boy... He's a Rowdyruff, isn't he?" a hoarse, almost menacing voice said. I stood up immediately. What the heck? Who was that?

"Who are you? Show yourself!" Bubbles called out again.

A hooded figure stepped out from behind the bushes and started walking towards us. A gleam in his hand caught my eyes and I realized something, this guy was armed.

"What do you want?" Bubbles hissed at him.

"Step aside, Bubbles," the hooded guy said. "This guys is an enemy of yours. Have you forgotten?"

"No!" she snapped, pushing my behind her and holding her hands out to her side protectively. "Boomer isn't evil!"

"Killers... Murderers..." he droned. "Step aside Bubbles!"

"Don't make me hurt you!" she threatened the man.

"You can't do anything," he hissed. "Citiesville has twenty-four hour surveillance technology installed all over the place. One small use of superpowers can be detected. You will be annihilated immediately. Both of you."

"Look, I lost my powers, okay?" I said. "I'm no threat to anyone. I've given up evil."

"I don't care," he spat. "You killed her!"

"I don't know what you're talking about!" I insisted.

"I'll kill you... And after that, I'll not only get my revenge but also my girl... Yes, that's the only way," he growled and with that, he jumped forward, taking Bubbles and me by surprise. He pushed Bubbles aside and as she fell down, he raised his knife up. The moment he tried to stab me, I grabbed his wrist, trying to still himself. He pushed forward and I felt myself fall backwards. He straddled me, his hand still above me, attempting to push the blade down into me.

"Stop it!" I heard Bubbles scream. She rushed over and tried to push him off, without using her powers but to no avail. She scrambled backwards and I heard a sob. "I'm sorry."

The next thing I knew, there was a bright red flash and the man flew off me. Immediately after that, I heard a loud siren.

My attacker scrambled up to his feet, holding his side. His hood had called off and I widened my eyes in recognition.

"Derrick?!" Bubbles gasped.

Ted looked at the two of us and he grinned. "It looks like I can't get my revenge. I guess I'll leave it to the government then." He stumbled back into the darkness. Bubbles helped me up and we looked around the place.

"What's happening?" I asked.

"I don't know," she replied.

Ted had mentioned some weird technology. Was this siren something to do with the town's anti-superpowers law?

As soon as I had thought that, a huge robot appeared before us, pushing trees aside as it walked forward.

"You are under arrest for the use of inhumane powers," it drawled. "Come with us or face death."

Death?!

"What do we do?" Bubbles asked.

"You can't expect to go with that thing!" I gasped. "Come on, Bubbles. You can destroy it."

"Maybe I can, but what about those things?" she asked, pointing around. I looked around and realized that we were not just facing one robot. We were facing a whole army. There were helicopters in the air as well as other robots around.

Bubbles gritted her teeth and she took my arms before flying off, pulling me along. Whatever that were behind us started firing at us, sending lasers and missiles in our directions. Thankfully, Bubbles evaded all of them.

Well, most of them.

One of the missiles exploded right behind us, the impact of the explosion causing Bubbles to let go of me and fall herself. I flipped myself around and saw a barrel of a huge gun being pointed at my face. I gasped and stumbled backwards. I felt a hand grip my shoulder and pull me away, just in time as the gun fired a laser right at the spot I was lying at.

Bubbles pushed me back and she flew forward, fist raised. She punched the robot, sending it toppling backwards before she took a deep breath. I immediately closed my ears, knowing what was coming. I had fought her countless of times in the past, enough to anticipate when the deadly sonic scream was going to make its appearance. It was one of the powers that were unique to her and only her. No one else, be it a Puff or a Ruff, had it. Naturally, it was also one of Bubble's trump cards in any of her fight against me.

I pressed my palms against my ears hard. Even with my powers, I couldn't stand the pitch of her scream. Without them, it was murder for my ears.

The robot ended up emitting some strange noise and it looked as if it was in a seizure. It fell to the ground and Bubbles jumped at it punching it hard till there was a hole right in the middle. She flew over to me and gave me a wide, innocent grin.

It just seemed so unbelievable that she had just destroyed a ten feet tall robot.

While Bubbles and I were staring at each other, momentarily caught in each other's eyes, we failed to notice a missile headed right towards us. What only snapped our attention back to reality was a loud explosion caused by the missile exploding midway in its track. Bubbles pushed me behind her as she looked around, narrowing her eyes.

Wait a second, where did all the other robots go?

"Bubs, what's going on?" I asked.

"I don't know. Where did everyone go?" she wondered aloud.

"They retreated. I made them," came a voice behind us. The voice sent a shiver down my back and I found myself holding tightly on Bubbles' wrist. It seemed so menacing and hateful. I could feel someone's gaze boring into me.

However, Bubbles had a much different reaction. She spun around immediately and I saw her eyes widen in glee.

"Buttercup!" she screamed in joy. She pulled away from me and ran towards the newcomer. I looked back as well, just in time to see Bubbles throw her arms around a raven-haired girl.

"Heyya Bubs," the green Puff greeted, briefly hugging her sister back. "You can't kick butt without me around, can you?"

"How did you know we were in trouble?" Bubbles asked.

No, the question was how did she even know where we were and why was she even here?

"I didn't," she replied. " I came to find you and I saw those things attacking you guys so I bashed them up… Then I heard they cry out 'Retreat! Retreat!' and ran like wusses. Damn it was hilarious."

"Thank you so much!" Bubbles squealed, hugging her sister again. Buttercup made a face and wiggled out of her grasps.

"Whatever," she snapped. "The two of you need to come back. Now."

Well, I knew it was going to end anyway. I was just surprised that it took them three weeks to figure out where we were.

"No!" Bubbles huffed. "I like my life here and I want to stay here awhile longer."

Buttercup rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Well, you can't, not when the government has seen your face. You'll be all over the papers tomorrow," she said to her sister. There was a slight pause and she turned to look at me, finally acknowledging my presence. Something flashed in her eyes and I swear it looked like a cross of worry and concern. "Anyway, Boomer, you _need_ to go back."

"Me?" I wondered aloud.

"I came here to fetch you. Well, you and Bubbles but more of you. Something has happened," she said.

"Bad?"

Buttercup gritted her teeth and she nodded. She looked at Bubbles then at me before she sighed and slid her hands into the pocket of her green hoodie. "You see… HIM is back and he's hell-bent on doing something. You and your brothers are a part of his plan."

"HIM…?" I gasped. "What plan?"

"We don't know… But that's just the start. You see…" She stopped, ran her hand through her short black hair and let out a groan of dismay. "Fuck. I have no idea how to break this to you."

"Buttercup…" Bubbles muttered. "What's going on? Did something happen to Brick and Butch?"

Buttercup's eyes widened and she bit her lip. Did something happen to my brothers? Did they die? Did HIM kill them? No way… While I was with Bubbles living a happy life, what happened to them?

"Butch is fine," Buttercup said.

Oh thank god my younger brother is safe. I was honestly worried that he would have gotten into trouble with that brash attitude of his. He was always so impulsive, unlike Brick…

Unlike Brick…

"And Brick?" I asked.

"He's alive," Buttercup said and I felt my spirits rise. However, she took a deep breath and continued, making my heart sink, "for now."

For now…?

For now?!

Brick was dying?!

I was barely aware of Bubbles coming over to my side and sliding her arm around my waist, pressing herself against me at an attempt to comfort me. All I could do was stare at Buttercup, taken aback by her revelation. Brick was dying as we stood there…

What the hell was I doing standing there? My oldest brother was dying.

"Take me to him," I said. "Bring me to Brick!"

Buttercup nodded and she flew off. Bubbles grabbed onto me and followed after her, headed right back towards Townsville. As we flew, I could feel tears threatening to spill out of my eyes. I didn't want Brick to die. I didn't want any of my brothers to die! I had been living with them all my life (except for the past three weeks). I couldn't imagine living while the others were dead.

Brick and Butch were the only ones who I ever had. They could be assholes at times but they were my brothers. I love them to no end.

We arrived at Townsville General Hospital and Buttercup started leading the way. It wasn't long before I caught sight of a familiar face, partially hidden by black hair. He was standing silently, leaning against a wall. His fist was brought up to his mouth while his other hand was stuffed deep inside the pocket of his cargo pants.

"Butch!" I gasped, running towards him.

Butch heard my voice and he turned to me. His eyes widened in disbelief initially. That emotion then morphed to despair before he started burning in rage. I stopped a distance away from him warily. He clenched his fist and jumped at me and the next thing I knew, I was faced with a torrent of fists clashing into my face at top speed.

"Bitch! Bitch! Bitch!" I heard him curse. "How dare you show your fucking face?"

"Butch!" I heard Buttercup snapped and his weight was immediately pulled off me.

My face stung but I refused to show it to Butch. I tasted blood in my mouth and I wanted to puke it out but I held that in as well. I stood up, brushing Bubbles off as she tried to check on my face.

"I hate you. It was all your fault," Butch hissed at me, refusing to look at my direction.

I gulped and walked closer to him. "Where is he?"

"Fuck you," Butch hissed.

"Butch, where is he?"

Butch glanced at me over his shoulders. "ICU. No visitors allowed."

No visitors allowed?! I couldn't see my brother even as he lay dying?

I looked over at the door to the ICU and frowned. No, nothing was going to stop me from seeing my brother. I pushed my way past everyone and ran to the door. I flung it open and ran in at top speed, peeking in every room and ignoring every cry and outburst I cause. Some people tried to pull me away but in my anger and despair, I managed to pull myself away.

I did find Brick's room eventually but by then, many were already hot on my heels. I only had a few seconds in his room.

Brick looked terrible. His limbs, torso and head were bandaged. His face was badly-bruised and swollen. There were tubes all over, going into him. I walked over and placed my hand on his forehead, pushing his bangs back. He looked nothing like the Brick I knew. There was no trace of the authority and confidence that defined him. In their place, was a broken, suffering boy, who could barely even breathe without the help of some stupid machine.

No, this wasn't the brother I knew!

What the fuck happened?

I heard the door swing open and a doctor was standing there, his hands on his hips.

"No visitors allowed," he hissed. He grabbed my arm and started dragging me out of the hospital. I didn't pay much heed to him, even as he threw me out of the ICU. All that was on my mind was Brick's face.

Outside the ICU, I walked lifelessly over to the chairs and plopped myself down on one of them. I felt empty, dead. I wanted to cry for him but I couldn't find the tears. I was vaguely aware of Butch sitting down beside me.

"He looks like shit, doesn't he?" he murmured.

"What… How?" I whispered, not being able to form a proper sentence.

"He was kidnapped by HIM… We don't know what happened while he was there. When we went there, he was already beaten up. HIM had him in his claws. If we were just a second late, he could have been decapitated." I looked up at Buttercup as she recounted the events and I felt my throat go dry.

Brick was held hostage by that monster?

"Also, while we were saving Brick, HIM summoned this hoard of monsters that Blossom and I could not fight off," she continued. "It wasn't safe for you and Bubbles to live alone anymore. We had to get both of you back."

What did HIM even want? Wasn't stealing our powers enough for him?

"Where's Blossom?" Bubbles asked her sister.

"She says she knows a way that _might_ save Brick. She's getting some stuff for that," Buttercup replied.

Why? Why were the girls helping us? Blossom hated Brick. So why?

Ah, whatever. It didn't matter. All that mattered was Brick.

* * *

><p><strong>I apologise to those of you who actually wanted to know how Boomer and Bubbles lived together in Citiesville but I felt that would spoil the whole intense atmosphere about the story now. Don't worry. Boomer will steal the spotlight in a bit and we might be taking a break from having HIM as a villain. <strong>

**I might do a side story one day. Perhaps a one/two-shot about how they lived but it won't be out in a while. I will, however, include some flashbacks. Don't worry. **

**Brick's gonna be a vegetable for a while as well. He might even die, depending on my mood. Just saying.**


	14. Chapter 12: Blossom

When I was finally done with what I hoped would save Brick's life and give me the answers I needed, Buttercup had returned home along with Bubbles. Although I was down in the Professor's lab, I could hear the two of them fly in, discussing whatever had happened in the hospital. I heard Buttercup call out my name.

"Down here," I responded.

It took only a few seconds for my sisters to fly down. I placed the serum I was working on at one side and turned to Bubbles with a huge grin. No matter what she had done, Bubbles was still Bubbles. I had missed her. She enveloped me in a tight hug, almost killing me through suffocation.

"I see that your strength hasn't diminished even after spending so long in Citiesville," I laughed while pulling away.

"I'm sorry I ran away Blossom but I really do love Boomer," she sighed.

Love? Now, they were in love?

"Does he love you back?" Buttercup muttered and Bubbles burst out into a bout of her usual cheerful giggles.

"Yes, he does!" she squealed. "Though he hasn't confessed."

"Then how can you be so sure?" Buttercup challenged.

"Because I can see it in his eyes! He's just too scared to say it out," Bubbles chuckled.

"Come on, Bubbles," Buttercup groaned, "you're basing your relationship entirely on his eyes? What if he's just messing with you?"

I doubt that Boomer was the kind to go around breaking the hearts of girls. That seemed more like Butch, or Brick. Boomer seemed to be the most sensitive out of the three. In actual fact, I had no objections with Bubbles dating him any more. After all, the boys had been well-behaved ever since they got back. Sure, they could have been pernicious people back when they were five but now, none of them seemed anything like their past self. Fine, Brick still had some of his male ego, Boomer still had some of his sensitive naivety and Butch still had that overwhelming destructive presence. But they hadn't hurt anyone or done anything illegal. I had done much thinking after Bubbles had left and I decided that I didn't want to oppress her. I wouldn't stand in her way if she really wanted to love Boomer.

The only thing that I was worried about was her grades. She was definitely doing decently in school and I didn't want that to change.

"Blossom, help me out here and tell Bubbles what a stupid decision it is to date Boomer," Buttercup sighed, pulling my attention back to their argument.

"Bubbles, I can't have you dating Boomer if it's going to affect your grades," I admitted, making Buttercup groan in annoyance.

"Bloss! You're missing the point. He's Boomer!"

"Buttercup, come on, give him a chance. I mean, you gave Butch a chance when you decided to help him find Brick. Don't be hypocritical," I replied.

Bubbles took in a deep breath and jumped at me, holding onto my arm happily. "Really Blossom? Really?"

I looked down at her and raised my eyebrow. "Hold it a second. I'm only allowing it on the condition that you don't let him distract you from school."

Bubbles threw her arms around me again, squeezing the life out of me as she continuously muttered joyous 'Thank you's in my ear. After a while, she pulled away and headed out, saying she wanted to bathe and sleep.

"Giving him a chance," Buttercup scoffed. "I don't see you giving Brick a chance when you refused to help him."

"But I did help him," I replied, turning to pick up the syringe that I had filled with the serum. I turned back to Buttercup and lifted it up. "And I'm going to help him again."

"What's that?" Buttercup asked, frowning.

"A little concoction of mine. Well, it really is just some diluted Chemical X. It took me some time to get a decent concentration," I explained. "This could end up saving Brick but at the same time, I don't want Chemical X to permanently be in his bloodstream and give him back his powers."

"So it'll wear off?"

I nodded. "In minutes. Hopefully, it gives me enough time to talk him into revealing something."

"But how're you going to do it?" Buttercup questioned. "They don't allow anyone inside the ICU thanks to the epidemic outbreak recently."

I glanced at the clock and back at her with a grin. "I'm going now. It's easier to sneak in."

With that, I left for the hospital, flying with the syringe tightly in my hands.

The hospital was pitch black and it was barely alive. I walked over to the ICU and saw Butch and Boomer sleeping outside. Boomer was leaning against his younger (but much bigger) brother. Butch was snoring as he leaned against his brother's head. The two of them didn't look like past criminals at all. In fact, all they looked like was a pair of scared little brothers, worried so much for their older brother that they couldn't even go home without him.

How cute.

I walked past the two of them and into the ICU. I knew damn well I wasn't supposed to be there but I needed to get to Brick. I held the syringe tightly in my hands, praying that I wouldn't accidentally trip over something and spill the serum. It was all I had. I mean, I did know the concentration and all so it would only take a matter of minutes to make. What I didn't want was being caught and having to explain my reasons for being inside the ICU with a strange black chemical and a syringe.

There were a few nurses and doctors around but I managed to slip past them easily in the dead silence of the night as well as some Powerpuff power.

I slipped into Brick's room and locked the door.

Brick showed no signs of improvement since the previous day when we brought him in. After injecting the black serum into his wrist, I stood and waited. I saw a response almost immediately and I glanced out to check if anyone decided to come and check on him. Brick's eye was twitching and his mouth opened slightly. I reached over and pulled the oxygen mask off his face, hoping that it was working.

His chest began to rise and fall deeply.

My eyes stayed on his face, watching and waiting. After a long while of waiting, his eye opened a little. He blinked rapidly as his eyes travelled around the room, finally stopping to rest on me.

He opened his mouth to say something but failed.

"Brick, are you feeling okay?" I whispered.

He nodded very slightly and opened his mouth again. "B-Bloss-som?" he said, his voice soft and hoarse, almost deathly.

I didn't know how long the serum would last. I needed to get it out of him as fast as I could. I walked over to him and leaned forward, looming over him.

"Brick, you've got to tell me all that you know," I hissed. "What happened?"

Brick frowned. "Can't... Move," he groaned. "What's… Wrong with me?"

"You were hurt very badly," I replied. "I gave you some Chemical X and hopefully that would help save your life. But it's not much because I don't want to overdose you. Before whatever I have put in wears off, tell me, please. What happened when you were kidnapped?"

He turned to look away. "HIM..."

"Yes, yes, I know, HIM. What did he do? What does he want?" I asked.

Brick opened his mouth and closed it again. I saw something flashed in his eyes and he narrowed them. I recognized the oh-so-familiar authority and challenge that were ever present in every conversation I had with him. Even after all the trouble Buttercup and I went through to save his ass, he still had the guts to oppose me.

Then again, I doubt he had any idea we went to help him. He barely even saw us before he blanked out.

"Not to you," he hissed.

I narrowed my eyes and leaned closer to him. "I know you know something," I snarled. "If you don't want HIM hurting your brothers just like he did with you, you would tell me everything you know."

Brick widened his eyes and he stiffened. I saw his heart rate quicken on the monitor and I found myself panicking a little. No, I couldn't let anyone find me here. Instinctively, I took his hand and stared into his red eyes.

"Brick, for once in your life, help me," I pleaded, "so that I can help you too."

Brick blinked a few times and let out a hoarse sigh. "He planned... To use us to... Kill you girls... A-and then destroy..." He stopped and coughed, his breathing starting to get a little haggard.

"Destroy? Destroy what?" I urged, though I had a vague idea.

"Destroy the world... Rule with sorrow... Despair..." Brick mumbled, his eyes closing slowly.

I stood up straight and took a step back, rubbing my hand through my hair. Great. Just great. We had to save the world from HIM once again but this time, I wasn't so sure how. HIM had those weird creatures. What could we do against them?

"Brick, did HIM tell you how he's going to go about doing it?" I asked. "Did he tell you anything?!"

"Blossom..." he mumbled, his eyes closed. "Take care of... Butch..."

"Hey, don't go back to sleep!" I gasped, rushing back to his side. "Come on, Brick. Wake up. You know, Boomer is back."

And probably for the first time since I knew him my whole life, Brick smiled. He smiled a wide genuine smile, not like the smirk or malicious grins he always gave us. Even though his eyes were closed, he seemed happy.

"Boomer… Take care of him too… Promise?"

"Okay, promise," I said, "but you've got to continue fighting, alright? I know you have more you can tell me."

But Brick didn't say anything and I didn't quite know if he would say anything anymore.

I left the hospital through the window, with much bigger worries that when I first came in. It felt as if a burden was lifted off my back, only for a much bigger one to be placed on it. I didn't know what the future would bring. Were my sisters and I going to end up like Brick as well? I shuddered at the thought and hurried home. I was going to need a really hot shower to calm myself down.

The next day, I was woken up not by my alarm or the sunlight streaming in, but by the ringing on my phone. It was the hospital. It turned out that the serum did help Brick. Although he didn't wake up nor did he show any signs of waking up that day, his condition seemed to have stabled and they were moving him out of the ICU and into a normal ward.

Well, thank god for him, though seeing as he was my most hated nemesis, I wasn't exactly thrilled by the news but Brick's recovery was a step closer to us foiling HIM's plans.

At breakfast, I broke everything I learnt to the girls, much to their dismay. We also filled Bubbles in about what had happened since she was gone and that was when I realized something.

Butch had suspected that Princess was involved with the kidnapping but when we were there, there was no trace of Princess at all. Was Princess really involved in it?

No, I guess not. Maybe I was thinking too much into it. Why would Princess want to kidnap her own boyfriend, right? The place was easy to break into as well. With HIM's powers, he could easily get Brick in there without alerting Princess.

"Oh, that's right," I half-heartedly gasped. "We forgot to inform Princess that Brick is in the hospital."

"Oh yeah," Buttercup sighed. "Do we have to? We can leave it to her to find out for herself."

"Come on, Buttercup. I'd want to know if my boyfriend in coma in a hospital," I said as I pulled out my phone and called her. Yeah, yeah, I had Princess Morbucks' number. I get it, it's a shock, but I once got paired with her for a Science project. It's safe to say that was the only project Princess got an A in, or even passed.

"Hello Blossom? What can I do for you?" she asked haughtily the moment she picked up and I had to resist the urge to groan.

"Nothing much," I replied. "Just wanted to tell you that your boyfriend was kidnapped by HIM a few days ago and he's in the hospital, now in coma."

"Oh, _that_," Princess said. "Well, thanks for telling me."

With that, she hung up. Was it me or did she seem not bothered about the fact that her boyfriend was in the hospital after being kidnapped by one of the most deadly villains in history? Wait, why was her response even 'Oh, that'? Did she already know about the kidnapping?

"Well, she didn't seem affected by that news at all," I huffed, keeping the phone. "Brick's really lucky to have such a caring girlfriend."

"I didn't ever think that Brick and Princess would end up dating. I'm still pretty much in shock," Bubbles admitted.

"He's an ass, she's a whore. Perfect pair," Buttercup chuckled. "Anyway, I'm in shock over you and Boomer and I will most probably continue to till I die."

"Says the girl who thinks Butch has has some sexy muscles and has the 'I'd-give-you-a-good-time-in-bed' aura," I muttered, clearly remembering what she had accidentally blurted out to Boomer over the phone a few days ago. Bubbles' eyes widened and she turned to Buttercup with a wide grin. Buttercup glared at me, her cheeks reddening.

"I don't like Butch!" she hissed. "Even if I wanted him in bed- which I _don't_- it doesn't mean I like him. There's no way I'm going to end up dating Butch."

"Well, you said there was no way you'd end up doing Mitch but look what happened at Robin's birthday party," Bubbles replied.

"How do you know about that?" Buttercup gasped, stiffening immediately.

"You two were all over each other in the open. Jen even got some pictures, I think," I replied, resting my cheek on my head as I grinned at Buttercup cheekily.

"Man here I was thinking you guys thought I was still a virgin," she sighed, rubbing the back of her head.

"Trust me, BC. We knew from the time you lost it a year or two ago," Bubbles chuckled, making Buttercup scowl and cross her arms.

"Anyway, what are we supposed to do about the Rowdyruffs now?" she asked, changing the subject immediately. "And HIM. What do we do about all of them?"

"How about we leave the boys alone for a while?" I suggested. "They've been good and they know better than to do anything, especially without their powers _and_ leader."

"And HIM?"

I shook my head. "I don't know Buttercup. I really don't know…"

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><p><strong>Yay! I got this lying in my phone, half-written for some time and it was kinda bothering me. I guess this brings the whole kidnap thing to a close (or does it?) but don't worry. There's still a whole shit-load of stuff coming up so don't go away. Haha. <strong>

**Please rate and review!~ **


	15. Chapter 13(a)

"In latest news, police had found the use of illegal superpowers in Citiesville National Park last night. Although strongest weapons were immobilized, those superpowered monstrosities have fled the city and were believed to have been welcomed into Townsville. Police are now on high alert on whether they will return. Police Chief Jeremiah Blakely says that he believes those people will not return but in the event that they do, the city has purchased anti-superpower antidote to deal with them. Citizens are told not to worry as the situation is under control."

The brown-haired teen narrowed his eyes at the television. With a growl of protest, he threw his half-empty can of coke at the screen. The can barely made an impact on the television and it fell onto the floor, the remnants of its contents spilling onto the floor. The teen ignored it and walked over to his bedroom. He lifted the mattress and reached under, taking out all the money he had collected. He counted it quickly before putting it all into his wallet. Yes, he had enough money to live at the next town for a while, the town of his birth.

He could try and return home to his parents but they had disowned him after he had refused to give up on his quest for revenge. He doubted that they would want him back. Anyway, staying with them would only fuel his desire for revenge even more and make him take stupid actions. No, he needed to formulate a plan- a foolproof one that will ensure the destruction of those boys who had destroyed his innocent younger sister.

And trust his target to show up at Citiesville a few weeks ago. After a little stalking and snooping about, he had found out that the blonde among the trio of murderers had lost his powers and perhaps, the other two might have as well. That would make it much easier for him to kill them and exact his revenge.

Oh and he'd get the girl he loved as well.

Yes, yes. He'd get that lovely blue Powerpuff all for himself.

He never liked those girls when he was younger. In fact, it was their incompetency that led to his sister's demise. Couldn't they even take on three small little boys? But when he saw her just a few weeks ago, he realized that she had developed nicely. That hourglass figure of hers was just begging to be touched in all the wrong ways. He wanted to make her scream and cry out his name.

But no, she had a boyfriend. And out of all the people in the world, it had to be him- the darned Rowdyruff that killed his sister. How could that happen? A Powerpuff and a Rowdyruff? It must have been a big joke. Who were they kidding? They couldn't be together.

If he killed the Rowdyruff then, he could get Bubbles. Yes, he could have her all to himself. It'd be better if he could get rid of her powers. Then she'd be his forever.

Maybe… Maybe he could also go after her sisters. If she developed nicely, the rest would have too, right?

Yes! Yes! He'd kill the boys and take the girls. He'd make them his. He'd get his revenge and some girls.

Yeah, that sounded perfect.


	16. Chapter 13(b): Boomer

**So when you see an (a), there's gotta be a (b). Two-chapter update today! Enjoy~**

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><p><em>I was standing in a dark alley. It didn't seem familiar to me, yet at the same time, it didn't feel foreign. It was a typical alley that you could find in any town or city. I didn't know what I was doing there. All I knew was that I was scared. <em>

_I was very scared, but I didn't know why. _

_I heard a click and I turned around. That was when I saw him. _

_Ted. _

_He was holding a gun out at me, with a maniacal grin on his face. He took one step forward, then another, and another. I tried to move but I was fixed rooted to one spot. I watched as he walked until he was right in front of me. He was holding the gun out, the barrel pressed closely against my chest. _

"_You killed my sister," he growled and he pulled the trigger._

I woke up with a start, almost screaming. Since I had fallen asleep on one of the many chairs that were outside the ICU, I ended up falling onto the floor. I sat up and looked around. People were giving me strange looks and some were even sniggering. Damn, it had been a long time since I felt like a fool.

"Are you okay?" I heard a laugh. I looked up and saw Butch, his hand outstretched towards me. I smiled back at him weakly and took his hand, pulling myself up to my feet.

"Yeah, I had a strange dream. That's all. So how's Brick?" I replied him as I dusted myself.

Butch grinned widely and slid his hand into his pockets. "Brick's great! Well, he's still unconscious but they believe that he'll pull through. Apparently, something miraculous happened during the night. They're running some tests on him now. We'll be able to see him when they transfer him to a normal ward sometime in the afternoon."

Thank god.

"Great," I laughed a little flatly. I realized that I was still a little shaken up from the dream, which was unusual. After all, everyone had nightmares. But then, why did I dream of Ted accusing me of killing his sister? Did my brothers and I really kill anyone back then?

"So what do you have on your mind now?" Butch cut into my thoughts. I rubbed the back of my neck and gave him a weak smile. Would Butch have known anything about people that could have died due to us? I was pretty sure Brick would have an answer as to why Ted thought we killed his sister but I wasn't so sure about Butch.

Then again, it was worth a shot.

"When I was in Citiesville with Bubbles, there was this guy. Apparently he recognized me, and he said that we killed his sister. I was wondering, you know, did we actually kill anyone?" I asked. "Because, if we did…"

I trailed off, stopping myself. I didn't want Butch to think that I was a wuss. Personally, I started to feel that killing was wrong and that we should treasure every single life around us. The thought of me killing anyone repulsed me a little. But I wasn't sure if Butch felt the same way. Even though he didn't commit crimes any longer, it didn't mean he believed they were wrong, right? I mean, we did stop not because we felt it was wrong but because we got bored.

"Well, we certainly did kill a lot of people," he sighed, looking up at the ceiling. "There were those policemen that chased after us and then there were people who could have been caught in buildings we destroyed."

My heart sank, realizing that I had forgotten those people. "But we didn't kill anyone with the intention of killing, did we?" I asked.

"If you're talking about intentional and planned murder, no," he responded. "So I'm assuming that dude's sister was either a cop or she must have been caught in an accident."

"Do you think it's right to kill me over that?" I wondered aloud.

"Perhaps," Butch murmured. "I really want to kill HIM for Brick, you know."

"I want to find out more," I admitted, "about all those people who have died because of us…"

Butch stared at me incredulously. "Bro, are you for real? We have other things to worry about!" he snapped, with an elaborate roll of his eyes. "For one, we need to think of ways to cover Brick's hospital expenses."

"Right… Am I fired?" I asked.

"No, not really," Butch said. "We told the Boss that you had some weird disease and needed to be quarantined. He bought that, especially with that new outbreak."

"Oh cool," I sighed.

"I'm juggling two jobs now," he continued. "In the morning, it's at the mechanics' and in the night, it's at some minimart."

Well, that explained his eye bags… If I were to take on two jobs like Butch did, I guess we would be able to cover up the hospital expenses. But that depended on how much exactly we needed to pay for the expenses. The two of us decided to check it out with the receptionist counter.

"Hey, we would kinda like to know how much our brother's hospital expenses are. Do you mind checking it out for us?" Butch asked the girl at the desk, ending of with a wink.

I rolled my eyes at his attempts but the girl seemed enthralled. She chuckled a little and she started typing on the computer, occasionally glancing up shyly at Butch. Oh god. Was this girl so easily moved or was my brother really that attractive? I looked at her twirling a blonde lock around her finger, and then at Butch. I guess it was partly both.

"Patient name?" she asked.

"Brick."

"Brick?"

"No last name," Butch said, stiffening. I saw his fingers dig into the hard countertop, almost turning his knuckles white.

"No last name? Strange," she muttered, her eyes on the computer.

Butch blinked for a moment before he leaned forward against the counter, his face a few inches away from her head. "Come on, we were three orphans abandoned on the streets until a kind homeless man took us in. Do you think we would have a last name?" he sighed, a little too sadly.

The girl looked up with wide eyes. "You're homeless?"

So that was all that mattered to her?

Butch's eye twitched and I saw his fists clenched. "No," he hissed, "can you just tell me how much my brother's hospital bills are gonna be so I can decide on whether I should get my girl an LV bag or simply a set of VS lingerie?"

The girl's eyes went round and she turned back to the computer. "It's all been paid for," she huffed. "Did your _girl_ happen to pay for you?"

I saw Butch's eyes narrow and I immediately knew what could happen if I left him be. I instantly placed my hand on his shoulder and started chuckling.

"Oh that's right!" I laughed. "I forgot I transferred some money in already. I'm sorry we were a disturbance. We'd leave you now." With that, I pulled Butch out of the hospital and into the streets. Butch looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

"Seriously Booms?" he sighed.

"No, not seriously," I replied. "I figured that you would end up breaking her face if I hadn't stepped in. Your anger is seriously a big headache."

"Well, if it wasn't you, who was it?" he snapped.

"How am I supposed to know?" I growled. "But anyway, someone has paid for it so leave it be. You don't have to take on two jobs now that I'm back. You should go home and rest."

"And you?" he asked bitterly.

"I'm going to walk around. Maybe I'll go and meet Bubbles," I replied. I saw Butch groan out loud but I ignored it. I turned around and waved, before walking towards the Powerpuff's place.

"If you were going to see your girlfriend, wouldn't taking a shower first be a good idea?" Butch called from behind me. I grinned and turned back at him before running to his side and throwing my arms around him.

"Thank Butch! I know you'd understand!" I chuckled.

Butch looked at me and sighed before pushing me off him. "Dude, stop hugging me!"

When I got to the Powerpuff's, it was about noon. I hesitated before I knocked the door softly. I was hoping Bubbles would answer the door. I didn't want to be beaten up by her sisters. When I called Buttercup the other day, she sounded like she was about to fly to Citiesville to beat the shit out of me.

The door opened and sadly, it was Blossom.

"Boomer? What do you want?" she asked.

"Is Bubbles around?" I replied.

"Bubbles? Why?"

"I need her help," I replied. Blossom raised her eyebrow at me suspiciously and I figured that I needed to explain myself to her. I told her the story of Ted's attack on us at Citiesville and how I wanted to find out more about his sister. Since Bubbles knew Ted on a personal level, I figured it would be easier to source out information with her help. Plus, she was a Powerpuff.

"Alright," Blossom replied and she turned behind. "Bubbles!"

"Yes?" I heard a familiar cheerful voice. From some room inside, I saw Bubbles skip out, wearing a frilly yellow apron over a blue dress. She saw me and her eyes widened as she ran over, pushing her sister aside, to pull me into a tight hug.

"Boomer!" she squealed.

"Hey Bubbles," I greeted. "I'm sorry to disturb you. Are you busy now?"

"Nope. I just finished cooking lunch, though I need to clean up," she replied. "Why?"

"I thought we could go out. I need help to go and dig up some stuff."

"Oh! Sure! Could you wait for a while? I'll go and clean up the kitchen as fast as I can!" she exclaimed and she ran back into the room. Blossom watched her and she started laughing before she invited me into their house. It wasn't the first time I was at the Powerpuff's since I had been here once when I was captured by them a long time ago. But this was the first time I was welcomed in.

"Wow, nice place," I commented as I looked about the simple, yet homely place.

"The professor has good taste when it comes to interior designing," Blossom replied. "Would you like anything to drink or eat?"

I realized I hadn't eaten breakfast yet but I decided to politely decline. Blossom shrugged and she continued staring at me. While I did see some traces of acceptance in her eyes, she still felt somewhat hostile and wary of me.

"Since I know you're wondering, I have no ill intent towards Bubbles. I won't hurt her and I won't let anyone hurt her," I said frankly.

Blossom narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms. Damn, couldn't she cool down a little and try to trust me? "Are you in love with her?" she asked.

Love? Was I in love with Bubbles? Could a Rowdyruff even love?

"Brick says that evil can never love," I murmured, part subconsciously. "But I like Bubbles. I don't want to hurt her. I want to protect her- though I can't. I want to be together with her and I can't stop thinking about her. Do I love her?"

"Sure sounds like you do," Blossom sighed. I glanced at her and saw that she had relaxed a little. Leaning against the wall, she had her hand on her hip and she started at me cheekily. "Have you told her that you love her?"

"N-No… I don't know if I should."

"I think you should. Don't care what your brothers may think. They've no right over you. You shouldn't let Brick boss you about," Blossom replied. "Well, it's not like he can boss you about as he is now. How's he doing anyway? The hospital called me just now."

"They're moving him to a normal ward," I said. "He's not dying anymore thank god."

Blossom frowned a little and ran her hand through her hair. "That's good… I need him alive. He's the only one who has answers."

"Blossom?"

She looked up at me and smiled. "Yeah?"

"Do you know who paid for Brick's hospital bills?" I asked.

Her smile faltered and she scratched the back of her neck. "Oh? That will be me."

Holy crap what?! Blossom was the one who paid for Brick's bill? Blossom? The person who hated Brick to the end of the world and back, the one who would have done anything to see his downfall, the one who initially destroyed him? She was the one who paid for him to get better?

Blossom rolled her eyes. "I get you're shocked but I need him alive, you know," she sighed and she turned away, fiddling with her fingers. "Anyway, he made me promise him and even if he is a dreaded and moronic villain, I am a woman of my words."

"He made you promise him?"

Blossom looked at me and flashed a smile. "Last night I sneaked into the hospital and gave him some chemical X, enough to save his life. He was awake for a short while, barely even three minutes, and he made asked me to take care of the two of you. I can't have you overworking to pay his bills. So don't worry about it."

Brick was awake and he asked her to take care of Butch and I. I felt a pang of guilt shot through me. Even though I had abandoned him and went with Bubbles, he still cared about me. He was still worried as he lay dying.

I remembered what I had said to Blossom. Brick was right. Evil can never love. There had been no love between the three of us back when we were younger. It was just a mutual obligation we had to stick together as we were brothers and also because we were Brick's minions and he would beat us (me, especially) up if we disobeyed him.

But it was different now. I did love my brothers and I was sure they loved me as well. So perhaps, we weren't evil anymore.

That meant that if I wanted to, I could love Bubbles as well.

"I'd tell her," I said to Blossom. "I'll tell her I love her."

Blossom grinned. "Good but if her grades continue to slip because of you, I'm going to beat your sorry ass up, understand?"

I gulped and nodded.

Bubbles appeared, wearing a white blouse and a blue skirt. She grinned at me and I walked up to her. Waving goodbye to Blossom, she took my hand and started pulling me out of the house. As we walked along the streets, I filled Bubbles in on what was bothering me and that was when she decided that we should stop by the police station as they could have the possible information we wanted.

The police station was a little quiet as there were not many people there and whoever was there were either reading or working on the computer. Bubbles walked to one of the desks and tapped on it lightly. The officer, who was a young redhead, looked up and her and his eyes widened.

"Bubbles! What can I do for you? Is there a crime anywhere? Should I send back-up?" he asked, immediately standing upright.

Bubbles shook her head. "No, I just want to know if I can take a look at some criminal files for investigative purposes," she replied.

"Oh. You have to check with the chief. Walk to the end of this hallway and turn left. His office is at the end."

Bubbles thanked the officer and the two of us followed his instructions to the room. Bubbles knocked on it until we heard a gruff voice asking us to go in. I gulped, feeling a little afraid. I just hoped no one there recognized me. I didn't want to get thrown into jail.

The chief was a balding old man, who was about an inch or two shorter than Bubbles and for a guy, that was very short. He looked at Bubbles and he smiled radiantly.

"Ah, Bubbles, what can I do for you?" he asked.

"Hi Chief!" she greeted. "I was just hoping if we could take a look at some files of past villains."

"Sure. Who do you want? Mojo Jojo? Fuzzy Lumpkins? The deadliest of the deadliest, HIM?"

"Actually, we would like to see the Rowdyruff Boys," Bubbles admitted. The chief's eyes widened in surprise and he stared at the two of us. As if he only finally noticed me, he narrowed his eyes and stood up, his arms behind his back.

"Sure," he said. "You'll have to follow me. Their file is kept in the archives since they have appeared to have gone _missing_."

I found myself trembling as he said it since he was glaring at me from the corner of his eyes. I gulped and stared straight ahead, refusing to meet his eye. He led us to a dark room at the back of the station where there appeared to be stacks of dusty files. He walked into the darkness and I heard rummaging. He appeared soon after with a file in his hand.

"Here it is," he said, passing Bubbles the file. Bubbles walked out, to the light, and opened the file. I peeked over and looked at it.

"Name: The Rowdyruff Boys. Origin: Created by Mojo Jojo. Age: 5. Crimes: Looting, robbing, vandalism, destruction of public property, assault and murder," Bubbles read out.

"Murder?" I repeated. "But…"

"Indirectly, of course. Those kids never killed anyone by their hands but lives were lost during their attacks," the chief explained. Bubbles flipped the pages of the file and there were a whole bunch of articles behind.

"Hundreds trapped in building attacked by the Rowdyruffs Boys. Rowdyruffs destroy 3 retail stores, taking the lives of 5 in the process. Rowdyruffs: the Powerpuff's downfall? Aside from almost destroying our favourite superheroes, these dreaded monstrosities destroyed handful of buildings, leaving many dead and more hurt and traumatized," Bubbles read out.

"So it really happened, huh?" I muttered to her and Bubbles nodded.

"Derrick's sister could be one of them," Bubbles sighed. "Chief, can we have a copy of the articles?"

"Sure, Bubbles. Why don't you go to one of my officers and get them to help you photocopy them," he suggested. "Meanwhile, your friend can stay here and help me out at the back. I accidentally made a mess while pulling out that file."

Bubbles nodded eagerly and walked off, leaving me alone with the chief. Although he had said that he needed my help, he made no signs of moving back into the room.

"I didn't quite get your name," he said.

Although I knew that not many people knew the Rowdyruffs individually and would most probably not be able to recognize me as one even from my name, I was not sure if that applied to the police. However, if I did fake my identity, it could land me into greater trouble and I had no choice but to tell him the truth.

"Boomer," I replied. Maybe, if I was lucky, he wouldn't know.

"Ah, Boomer," he sighed. "So how are Brick and Butch doing?"

Uh-oh. Busted.

"Fine," I muttered, turning away and clenching my fist. I heard a click and I looked at him again, only to see him point a gun at me. I immediately took a few steps back until I felt my back hit the wall.

"So what's a Rowdyruff doing researching on the Rowdyruffs and what kind of spell do you have Bubbles on?" he asked.

Shit. I really was busted.

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><p><strong>Well, Brick's a vegetable and Boomie's in danger. I wonder what's gonna happen next? :) Hey there, folks. Thanks for following up so diligently and leaving reviews and all. Thank you so so much!<strong>

**So hit them review button and send in more of your opinions! Constructive feedback is always welcomed! :) **


	17. Chapter 14: Bubbles

I heard the safety of a gun click and I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand. I was sure the sound came from inside of the police station, somewhere around the back.

Oh no, Boomer!

I listened harder.

"So what's a Rowdyruff doing researching on the Rowdyruffs and what kind of spell do you have Bubbles on?"

I recognized that voice. It was definitely the Chief.

"Hey, I'll be back really quickly so just continue copying them okay? Thanks!" I said to the officer helping me out before dashing off to fly from where I had come from, still listening hard and praying that he wouldn't shoot Boomer.

"Spell?!" I heard Boomer scoff and I slowed down as I reached the bend to turn towards them. "I'm in love with her!"

And I stopped. Did he finally admit it? He finally admitted that he was in love with me? I landed and rushed to the wall, peeking. Chief was holding a pistol, pointed at Boomer, who had his hands up. Boomer looked a little angry- no, make that really angry- and I realized that I had never actually seen Boomer get angry. Brick always seemed angry and Butch normally got really pissed off whenever he fought (and got thrashed) by Buttercup. Boomer, well, I never saw him flare up at someone before.

The girls and I used to wonder if he even could get angry or if he was too stupid and dense to even realize that something was worth getting angry over.

But there he was, getting angry.

"How can the two of you possibly be in love? You must have done something to her! I'm taking you under custody until you tell us what you did," Chief said.

Oh no.

Boomer narrowed his eyes, his fists clenching. "Do I have to fucking spell it out to you?" he roared. "I love her. She loves me. We are in love. There's no law saying I can't love her!"

"It goes against the fabric of reality. Good and evil can't go together!" Chief insisted.

"Well in that case, I'm not evil," Boomer spat. "I'm perfectly good and I have been living here for months. Ask Bubs if you don't believe me!"

"Enough!" I snapped as I flew over, standing in front of them. "Chief, could you please put that gun down?"

Chief narrowed his eyes but he did so without protesting. He crossed his arm and leaned against the wall, his eyes darting to and fro between Boomer and I. "So what's the deal with you both? Aren't you supposed to be enemies?" he asked.

"Yeah but… Stuff change. People change," Boomer replied.

"That may be it. However, you can't expect to disappear after committing all those horrid crimes and come back all of a sudden, expecting everyone to forgive you. Have you ever thought about all those families who have lost loved ones in your escapades?" Chief said.

I looked at Boomer and I saw him clench his fist by his side, looking downwards at the ground. "We're not asking for anyone to forgive us. We don't want to do anything from you. We just want to live our lives here and we're going to whether you like it or not!" he cried out.

The chief rolled his eyes and it occurred to me that he didn't trust Boomer at all. He fixed me with a disappointed stare, one that simply screamed "You can do better than this, Bubbles," as he moved away from the wall and closer to us.

"Besides," Boomer continued. "It's not like you can arrest me. I've done nothing wrong ever since I got back here. We all haven't. Our crimes were all from back when we were five and as Brick used to quote, 'children under the age of 7 years could not be guilty of felony, or punished for any capital offense, for within that age the child is conclusively presumed incapable of committing a crime so they can't do anything to us,' so why don't you just piss off?"

I simply watched as Boomer and the chief stared at each other with the intent to murder each other if anyone made a move. I couldn't help but wonder who would actually win in a fight between them. The chief might be old but he was the chief of police. He would definitely pack a punch. Boomer might have lost his powers but I doubted that he lost any of his combat skills.

As much as I was curious, I didn't want to watch and find out.

"Chief, I know that you don't trust Boomer and his brothers but why can't you just give them a chance? I'll make sure that they're good and if something happens the Powerpuff Girls will look right into it and have them arrested as quickly as we can," I assured him.

I took Boomer's hand and started dragging him off as the chief sighed behind us. The officer that was helping me out earlier on had already complied all the articles we needed and had them nicely in a file. Thanking him, I took the file and the two of us left the station. Since it was nearby, we decided to go to the boys' place and look through them.

I flew Boomer home and we entered through the window. Butch was there, wearing sweatpants and a tank top as he carried a backpack on one shoulder. He was standing in front of the television, watching so engrossedly that he didn't notice the two of us. Boomer walked over to him.

"Yo, what are you up to?" he asked, making his younger brother jump in shock. Butch glared and Boomer and turned back to the television. Ignoring him, Boomer led me to the table and sat down. I joined him and started taking out the content of the files. There were a lot of articles, but all of them basically said the same thing.

The Rowdyruffs destroyed something. People got hurt. Some were killed.

"Boomer, why exactly are we looking through these things?" I asked him as I looked at an article that had a surprisingly nice photo of the boys. I'm surprised they didn't try to break the camera. Maybe they didn't even see it.

"I'm having a hard time accepting the fact that I killed people," Boomer sighed, running his hand through his messy blonde hair.

"You killed people?" I heard Butch say from behind us. He joined us at the table and looked at the articles scattered about. "Cool, are these all about us?"

"About how many people died because of us," Boomer snapped. "Not something to be proud of, Butch."

The green Ruff grinned sheepishly and shrugged. "Well, we could always blame Brick. He's the one who's always pushing us about to destroy stuff."

"And you're always sticking up to him like a little bitch."

"Well, you let him bully you're _his_ little bitch!"

"I do not! I just respect him!"

"No, you're scared of him!"

"No way!"

"Yes way!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"Shut up!" I screamed and glared at the two of them. "Don't start pushing stuff onto him when he's not here sheesh."

Butch chuckled and adjusted the bag that was slung on his shoulder. "Well, I'm going to the gym. Smell ya later." He walked off and I heard the door slam shut. Boomer sighed and slumped into his seat.

"Great, now what do I do about this?" he groaned.

"Butch?"

"Nah, Butch and I are always like this. I guess we kinda went overboard because Brick isn't here to put us in our places," he laughed before he put on a serious front. "Ted. What should I do about him? Should I go and apologize?"

"We can't enter Citiesville," I pointed out.

"Well then I guess it's too bad for him, huh?" Boomer mused.

"Yeah."

Boomer let out a groan and flopped onto the table, banging his head lightly against the top, muttering "I'm a murderer," over and over again. I watched him for a moment before deciding that all he was doing was hurting himself both physically and mentally. I reached over and let my hand run through his hair, smiling to myself at how good he really had become. Boomer stilled and sat up slowly, turning to look at me with wide eyes.

"Don't do that. You're hurting yourself," I said softly. "The past is the past, Boomie. We have to learn to move on with life no matter how hard it tries to drag you down. You may have killed people in the past but you still have a long life ahead of you. You can make up for it somehow."

Boomer blinked and looked down. "Oh yeah? How?" he murmured skeptically.

"Maybe one day, after all three of you have gained our complete trust, maybe, just maybe, Blossom or the Professor would be able to come up with something that could give you boys back your powers. When that happens, you can join us and fight crime," I suggested, letting my hand drop from his hair to his face, cupping his face lightly.

Boomer looked up and met my eyes as he placed his hand above mine. "Do you trust me, Bubbles?" he asked, his voice barely a whisper.

"Yes."

Boomer's eyes sparkled with joy and a much deeper emotion. He leaned forward and placed a kiss on my forehead. "That's good… Because I really love you, Bubbles. I really have since a long time ago. You were the reason I told Brick to come back here, even though it may be dangerous for us when we have no powers," he whispered, his mouth barely off my head.

I felt something flutter in my stomach. Butterflies? Not quite. I was a more soothing feeling that having butterflies flying in there. I wonder what it was. Well, whatever it was, it made me pull Boomer's face down so our lips could meet in a long, gentle kiss.

"Bubbles, remember when I was revived by him and you said I was cute? I think I fell for you then," he continued. "But evil knows no love. Evil cannot love. I had to choose between being evil and being in love. I chose evilness. Now, I choose love." He kissed me again. This time, he pushed himself against me and it almost seemed desperate, like as if I was going to disappear if he let go.

"Boomer…" I sighed as we pulled away. I could feel tears spilling out from the corner of my eye. I felt so happy to hear him admit it. Even though I had known that he loved me, hearing him say it sent bubbles of happiness through me. "I love you too!"

He kissed me again before he pulled me into a tight hug. "I'm so happy," he chuckled. "Oh, Bubbles, I love you."

I giggled and hugged him tighter. "How about I stay the night today? It's been awhile since I've been so close to you."

Boomer pulled away and stood up, laughing with closed eyes. "It's only been a day, Bubbles!" he sighed. "But alright."

We decided to watch a movie to pass the time. As Boomer went to search Brick's room for a movie, I went to the kitchen to get some food. Their kitchen was almost empty, aside from crackers and a loaf of bread. I looked in their fridge and I had to wonder why they even needed one. It was empty. All it had was ice and a few bottles of cola. I took out two bottles and I poured a few packets of crackers into a bowl before going out. Boomer was already setting up the movie. I placed our snack on the table and took a look at the DVD case.

"Friday the 13th? Boomie, you know I don't do well with horror," I complained.

Boomer didn't look at me as he continued meddling with the DVD player. "That's all we got, honestly. Unless you want some of Butch's porn DVDs," Boomer suggested, making me scoff in disgust. Boomer moved over to the couch and fixed me with a playful look. "I thought so. Don't worry. If you're scared, just hold on to me."

I hugged him tightly the moment the movie started. Boomer chuckled as he held me close to him, leaning the side of his face against the top of my head. As I had expected, I was terrible with the movie. Every time the anything out of the ordinary happened, I ended up screaming or burying my face into Boomer's t-shirt, making him chuckle. In contrast to me, Boomer was entirely calm throughout the movie. Though, considering that he and his brothers only had horror movies, it would not make any sense if they frightened him.

"Just for the fun of it, let me ask you a question," Boomer said as we watch Jason viciously slash one of his victims in the movie. "Who among the Rowdyruffs do you think gets frightened the easiest by horror movies?"

Well, on face value, it would seem like it was Boomer but there he was, watching it, unfazed by the gore and horror.

"Erm… Brick?" I asked.

"Butch."

Butch?! The toughest among the Rowdyruffs was the most scared of horror films? It had to be a joke, right? I looked at Boomer and saw that he was grinning at me widely, as if he was anticipating my reaction to that. No way, he wasn't lying. It really was Butch.

Boomer and I decided to binge watch horror movies since we had no idea on how we could spend the day in a more meaningful way. We were an hour into _Halloween_ when the sound of the door unlocking snapped us out of the movie as well as chattering from outside.

"No way," Boomer sighed. "Has Butch found himself a whore to fuck?"

I elbowed Boomer for using such words and he grinned at me sheepishly, mumbling a quick apology. Butch entered the room and with a girl. However, it was no whore.

"Buttercup?! What are you doing here?" I wondered aloud as I saw my sister walk in, making her jump from the scare.

Now, where had we seen a similar reaction? Hehe…

"I-I-I-I-I… Came here for a drink!" she exclaimed.

"We met at the gym and we had a friendly spar," Butch explained.

"And you decided to bring her all the way home for a drink?" Boomer asked flatly. I exchanged looks with him and grinned. He obviously wasn't buying it and so wasn't I.

"Shut up!" Buttercup snapped. "Alright, you got us!"

"Busted," Boomer sang, leaning back into the chair and resting his arm behind his head. "So BC and the Butchie boy are in love."

"Hey hey! No one said anything about being in love!" Buttercup snapped. "The reason why I'm here is… It's because… Erm… That…"

"Butch's room is that way," Boomer said, pointing to the door right beside the television.

"I know that!"

"Oh? Been there before?" Boomer sniggered.

"No! It's… Well, I've been into Brick's and yours so that's obviously Butch's!" Buttercup insisted.

"Oh? So Brick as well huh? This is a twist indeed," Boomer laughed.

Although watching that was entertaining, my phone started ringing, making everyone shut up and frown as 5SOS's _She Looks So Perfect_ started blasting throughout the place. I reddened a little at the embarrassment of having my ringtone judged by two boys and immediately answered the phone.

It was Blossom.

"Hey, Bubbles, who're you with right now?" she asked.

"Boomer, Buttercup and Butch," I replied. "Why?"

"Oh! Everyone's there? Great. Help me pass this message on to them as well, okay?" she said.

"Sure. What's up?"

"Nothing much," Blossom replied. "Brick woke up, that's all."

* * *

><p><em>AN: For those who don't know, Jason is a character in the Friday the 13th franchise._

**Streamers and confettis! Brick is awake (omg rhyme)! So we have the Blues done in this chapter. Next shall be the Greens. Stay tune to find out what went on in the gym. Hehehe. ;)**

**Please be a kind soul and click on the review button. I love reading stuff from y'all. **

**Round of applause to Hinako29 who has been reviewing every single chapter of mine! ****And also, hats off to everyone who have been reviewing, following, favoriting and reading my story. Thank you so much for supporting my passion! **

**I love you all. Please look forward to more of this because this story has a long way to go before it officially ends!**


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